Full Stop
by SailorMoonPie
Summary: January is a small town girl from Wisconsin who had big aspirations, bigger than what her family could afford or spare the headache for, as she finds herself to be the official publicist for Tony Stark himself. Jan has no idea of the headache she's in for.
1. CHAPTER I

**CHAPTER ONE**

**( **THE INTERVIEW** )**

**THE PEN IN her hand taps** wildly against the suave and sleek black leather case of her portfolio. The noise catching the attention of the over-polite receptionist, who turns her chin up to see what was making the sound. January smiles apologetically at the woman, stopping the pen with her two fingers. She had never been so nervous before. In her mind, she had every right to be. This was a once in a lifetime opportunity after all. Her stomach churns, as she tries to find some meaning to distract herself. She places the pen inside her portfolio, her fingers delicately skimming over the new business cards that she had paid a pretty penny for. She liked seeing her name etched in black against the card. January Jenner. She had yet to use one and wrote it off as a luxury to have a stack.

Especially in the case that she was currently unemployed and living in the most expensive state in America - California. Living in California has its perks, more job opportunities, higher wages, hot and sunny most of the time. It also had a variety of scenery, drive to the east towards Nevada there's an arid and dry desert, drive North towards Oregon and there are thick and lush forests that reminded her of home. A home that she never wished to return to.

Wisconsin was too small for her in her opinion, however, her parents and her brothers thought otherwise. She had made it a point to only go home when it was the holiday season. Her eyes gaze out of the large glass window, watching the cars from the interstate zoom by without any care of what company they were passing. Granted, the building appeared to be much smaller on the outside, the interior, however, was large, spacious.

There was an unwelcoming presence about how barren the inside was, it was inhuman - lacking anything sentimental or warm. She swallowed the lump that was starting to build up in the back of her throat. She had to convince herself that this is how most corporate office must look like on the inside. Especially if their main export was weapons. She was actually surprised at how much light filtered through the open windows, as if they were begging for someone to come look in their windows, a challenge, to see what they were developing - if they even could.

Nervously, January began writing things down into her portfolio. Skills that she could share with them, even if she had never actually had experience in this field yet. Skills that included her being able to work under immense pressure, relying on nothing but her quick wit to get out of sticky situations - things that she had only ever displayed in college and sometimes at her old job. Her stomach flips involuntarily once again, causing her to let out a small gasp at the feeling. The longer she waited the more anxious she was becoming. She had a tendency to do this, to hype something up to the point she felt sick.

She attempted to shake her head to clear the feeling of being dizzy without drawing too much attention to herself. She tries to convince herself that this is part of the interview process. Patience was the most important virtue of them all even if this was a fast-paced company and work environment.

Not long after her moment of self-doubt, a pair of heels clicking in the distance catches her attention. Eagerly, she whips her head in the direction of the sound, a light red hue spewing across her face as comes to the sudden realization of how naïve and inexperienced she looked compared to the woman walking towards her.

Her light red locks were tied up in a neat, pristine bun, a tight-lipped smile spread across her thin lips as her gaze rested upon her. "Miss Jenner?" the woman calls to her, clutching on to her clipboard. January sucks in a deep breath to stop the tightening within her chest as she stands up, her dark heels also clicking on the linoleum floor.

"Y-yes," she stammers out, afterwards quickly clearing her throat and extending her hand towards the woman. She takes it in a light shake, her blue eyes holding her own, looked tired and worn out as if she had been through this process millions of times before. "My name is Pepper, you're here for the one-oh-clock interview?"

"Yes, that's correct," January affirms with a nod of her head. Her hands grip on to her portfolio tightly as she places it in front of her. "Great, follow me," Pepper instructs with a warm smile - the most genuine thing she's seen in the building since her arrival twenty minutes ago. January follows closely behind the woman, trying to not trip over her feet in the tall heels. She regrets not wearing shorter heels as the glossy floor threatens to be her downfall, one wrong move could lead to the worst slip up of her life.

"How are you today?" Pepper speaks up, trying to make small talk. "I'm fine," January answers, her brows furrowing as she looks to the floors, pleading with herself not to fall but to look confident in these shoes. "Traffic is horrible but, you know," January continues, stopping short as Pepper stops abruptly to unlock a pristine white door. The woman snorts at the comment. "Don't I know, takes me at least an hour to get home and I don't live too far from here,"

January forces out a chuckle along with Pepper as they enter the small office. January hesitantly looks around, admiring how homey and quaint the office felt while also looking professional and clean. This was the thing she was after, trying to have an office like this was what she's always dreamed of. She places herself in the chair across from Pepper, looking at how everything was strategically placed on her glass desk.

Her business cards were placed out in front where anyone could take one. In bold font across each one read the same thing, _"Pepper Potts: Executive Assistant"_. Pepper turns her attention from her computer towards January, who snaps her head towards her with a sheepish smile. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to -"

"It's quite alright," Pepper excuses her. "I'm a fan of them myself," she then looks to the paper in front of her, undoubtedly her resume. January taps on her portfolio, contemplating on opening it up. All that was inside was her resume and a copy of her degree along with a couple of certificates showing she was more than qualified for this job, just not experienced. "So January, that's a unique name,"

"It's a family name," she replies shyly. "It was my great grandmother's name,"

Pepper merely nods her head at this information before concentrating on her resume once again. "You went to the University of Chicago. How was that?"

"It was great," January replies with a smile, although she secretly hated reminiscing about when she lived in the city. It was the first-ever real-time she was on her own, away from her family. She was poor - poorer than she was at the moment. Switching from class to class, debating on dropping out at one point but, the pure thought of going nowhere in Wisconsin terrified her. "Loved the city, loved the lake. The planetarium was always my favorite place to go when I wanted alone time,"

"I always liked going to the art museum, seeing whatever new piece they had on display," Pepper states in a dreamy tone. She clears her throat, shuffling the papers in front of her. "Tell me, how would you plan, organize, and prioritize your work?" she questions, throwing January a dazzling smile. January's mind goes blank for a moment as she peers into Pepper's eyes. She wanted to kick herself, she was struggling to find an answer.

"Well I-I'd," January starts with a stammers. "I'd make sure that my client comes first. Any tasks that are thrown at them I'll try to absorb it and make it better for their image. Anything after my personal client I'd spend time trying to promote the companies image. Of course, I can always reverse those whenever or whatever has a higher priority," January lamely chuckles at her response. She knew she was failing already. She just wanted this torment to be over with already, she never felt so humiliated. "I'm sorry," she adds catching Pepper's attention. "I'm just a little nervous,"

Pepper once again flashes a warm smile. "That's alright, I can see that this is a little different than what you're probably used to," she states, examining her past employment. The action makes January's cheeks heat up once again. Her confidence was easily fleeting. "Can you give me an example of when you went outside the box for an employer?" Pepper questions.

"Ah, well," January sneaks a peek at the notes she had taken in her portfolio to try to think of something. Her heart stops fluttering in her chest once her eyes rest on a side note that she felt confident in. "At the restaurant, I used to work at before moving here, we held a Make-a-wish event. It was for a little girl, who wanted to be a mermaid. I was in charge of the promotions, and getting all the connections for the event coordinator. We made enough money to give her the party she always dreamed of, we were even able to get an actress to come in and dress as Ariel from The Little Mermaid. I got recognition on the company website and even made the newspaper,"

"Is she still -" Pepper begins to ask the inevitable question. January sighs heavily and shrugs her shoulders, looking solemnly to the ground. "I'm unsure. I believe my manager got something from the family but never came upfront about it," She confesses. She watches as Pepper scribbles notes down on the side of a piece of paper. "Well, you what you did sounds wonderful. You helped make her dream come true," she says, her voice trembling a little.

January tries her best to hide the smile that was threatening to splay across her lips. She always knew that story was a tear-jerker, she dubbed it the "guilt trip" story. Someone would have to be a monster to not feel sorry thinking about it. "How do you plan on handling information from several sources since there's bound to be a few overlapping stories?" she questions, finally getting the nerve to look at her in the eyes.

"Well, first I'd search to see who was the most reliable source of information. See which parts of the story seems consistent in all of the sources. If it's good, then promote each of the source's information. If it's bad, find some way to twist their stories to make it seem like the client or the company was in the right and in the worst-case scenario: doing anything with the best intentions," January answers to what she deems as flawlessly.

With each question, she could feel her confidence coming back. She felt like a natural, and could only imagine what it would be like to work in this building all the time. Her cockiness was going to be her downfall. "Lastly, what are your long-term objectives?"

This ends her ego-praising streak. Personal questions didn't come naturally to her. "My long-term objectives?" she reiterates the question, unsure, only to receive a nod from Pepper. "Profession wise or life-wise?" she attempts at joking, only to let out a humorless laugh as she tried to get out of the question. A feeling of self-loathing burrows its way into her chest as she tries to think of the best possible answer as fast as possible. "Either or," Pepper states as she writes down something on the side of the paper, making January drown in doubt.

Both things she's never really thought of before. Isn't that thing? Go to college, get a job, find someone, start a family, die. She had never thought of the in-between. She gnaws on her bottom lip before flashing another nervous smile. "Profession wise, I want to be the best there is. I'd like to picture myself as a large part of a company or to my client's reputation. I'd like to be a valuable asset," January shortly answers.

"Well, here at Stark Industries, we think everyone is a valued person. Not just an asset," Pepper hums. Doubt once again floods her veins. She knew she had said something wrong but that was the only answer she could think of on the spot. She wished she had more practice with this sort of thing. She may as well just chalk up Stark Industries under "Failed Interviews".

Her bottom lip finds its way under her teeth as she looks around the office one last time in a fleeting attempt to memorize the setting of what she wanted but could never have. "It's been a pleasure, Miss Jenner," Pepper states as she ushers her out of her office. Unfortunately, even being out of the technical interview she knew anything she said now would still reflect on her being an applicant. "I could say the same as well, Miss Potts," January politely replies with a small smile. "Good luck with the traffic situation," she attempts to joke. Pepper offers her one last handshake. "We'll be in touch,"

She then turns on her heel and walks in the opposite direction, back to her office. January offers her a fleeting look before returning to the lobby area where she had sat in limbo waiting for her to call her up. Tears threatened to overflow as they began to prickle at her eyes. Once she reached the safety of her car, she took in a deep breath, trying to steady her nerves. She had become so dead set on nailing this interview that she hadn't thought of what would happen if she bombed it, which she felt as if she did.

A few tears escape her, causing her breathing to become more infrequent. A whimper escapes her as she places her forehead against the steering wheel of her car, letting more tears pour from her eyes. Perhaps her parents were right, maybe she wasn't cut out for big city life. She wipes the hot tears that ran down her cheeks away, as she tries to compose herself. She hadn't even made it out of the parking lot of Stark Industries before she started to break down from embarrassment.

There was only one way she knew how to cope with her unwavering feeling of instant regret. She throws her car into drive and heads towards the only place she could drown in her self pity.


	2. CHAPTER II

**CHAPTER TWO**

**( **JANUARY'S BLUE'S** )**

**THE SHOT GLASS clinks against the** water glass on the sticky wooden bar. January's face puckers at the god awful taste of the cheap tequila. She wasn't going to complain about the quality so long as it was free. From the opposite side of the bar her friend Babs stares at her with disappointment while cleaning the edge of the bar with a white cloth. "How many more of these can you give me?" January asks, causing Babs to roll her eyes while placing her hands on her hips.

"No more," Babs proclaims taking the shot glass away and pushing the glass of water towards her. January whines in protest, laying her face down on the bar. "I suck," she groans, earning an eye roll from the sultry bartender. "You don't suck," Babs tries to protest. "You're just having a rough streak, that's all,"

"Easy for you to say," January slurs out, placing her head in her palm. "You have two jobs!" she shouts, pointing at her wiping down the counter. Babs slaps the bar with the cloth before propping her upper body up on it. "As a bartender and a model, how is that great?"

"What you just said sounds amazing! You get to meet new people all the time, build up your career," January involuntarily compliments, flattering her friend. "It's better than just sitting at home, watching reruns of F.R.I.E.N.D.S. all day on TBS,"

"I think you need to get out there and stop moping around about the interview. I don't think you failed it," Babs tries to encourage her, slightly pushing the glass of water closer to her friend. She had arrived an hour and a half ago and demanded two shots up front before she even told her the events of the interview. January always had been the dramatic one, ever since college.

"She asked me what my long-term goal was and I froze, Babs. I don't know what my long-term goal is. I don't even know what I'm going to do tomorrow. How am I supposed to know what I want to do for the rest of my life?" January whines, pushing the glass of water away from her. Her stomach churns in a different way than it had earlier today.

She holds back a gag, placing her hand against her mouth. Instant regret floods her being. She didn't want to get this messed up. She had only vomited from drinking a handful of times in her life, she'd be damned if today was going to be another. She also didn't think she could make it to the restroom in her heels. Preemptively, she begins sliding them off, resting them against the stool she was perched up on.

"Do you think you could get me a job here?" January asks, twirling the shot glass in her hand out of boredom. "I don't think I can stomach another publicist interview and bomb it,"

Babs slides the shot glass away from her and places it below the bar, causing January to once again whine in protest. "Hey babe?" Babs beckons her undivided attention. January lazily looks up at her as she sips on the water which was the only thing left for her to drink. "Yeah?" she responds to the pet name after swallowing a mouthful of water which her body desperately needed. "Get a grip. You are January Jenner. You're going to run this town one day -"

"Excuse me," a voice calls to them. Both of their attention goes to the man dressed in formal business attire with a drink in his hand. They way he was staring at January made him reek of desperation. It was a look that both January and Babs had seen before. They gave each other a knowing look before turning their attention back towards the man. His colleagues were spying at him from a booth across the way. It was an obvious bet that they had made for him to come over an approach her.

"I couldn't help but notice a pretty lady was without a drink. Can I get you anything gorgeous?" he flirted, causing January to involuntarily gag at the lame pick up line. Babs eyes narrow at the man, while January merely smiles up at her for a split second before glaring at the man. Babs grabs on to her hand aggressively, causing the man to stare at their intertwined fingers. "Please don't hit on my girlfriend in front of me," Babs states in a threatening tone. "Especially with that lame excuse of a pick up line,"

"Yeah, I'm taken!" January drunkenly chimes in, as Babs presses a kiss to the back of her hand. The man blinks a couple of times before a scowl crosses his face. "Your loss," he states as he sulks back towards his friend group, who was hooting and hollering at his failure. Everything had gone just as they had rehearsed and had done a million times in Chicago. "They just keep getting more desperate," Babs hisses out under her breath as she lets go of January's hand. "Thanks," January softly says, taking another sip of her water.

Of course Babs was beautiful but she was also tragically attracted to men as was January. Thankfully, Babs's dry demeanor tended to scare off most of the overly-cocky guys that threatened to give her and January a bad time. "Anyways," Babs continues from where she had previously left off before she was interrupted. "You are January Jenner, you are going to have your clients eating out of the palm of your hands. You're going to get awards for how good you are at your job. Do you want to know how I know?"

"Not really, but I could use a pick me up, so yes," January mutters under her breath. "Because you used to take care of me. All throughout college you were my cheerleader and look at where it lead me," Babs encourages, throwing up her hands to motion towards the bar and then towards herself. January looks up at her blankly, blinking a couple times before snapping out of her drunken haze. "You literally just tried to convince me your jobs were horrible," January accuses, pointing angrily towards her.

Self doubt was seeping into her body at an even more rapid pace. She cringes in embarrassment as she thinks of the interview, groaning as she wipes her hand across her face. "Yeah, well, at least you can drink for free," Babs retorts, turning around to tend to the top-shelf liquor she had been organizing before January had stormed in. She heaves out a hefty sigh as Babs attempts to leave her alone just for a moment. She pushes her water glass forward, deeming it too thick to drink on her stomach. She was past trying to sober up, she knew she was going to vomit from the several shots she had taken, and for what? Because this was the fifth interview in a row she had completely bombed? Her confidence shrank even lower than what it already was.

Before she had moved out to California she was egotistical, full of herself, thinking she was able to do anything. What a fool she had been to follow Babs out here. Babs had a career, she had had one since she was a teenager. She had only gone one year without Babs being in the same city as her, only to wind up moving close to her once again. Truth be told, she hadn't mind living alone but she didn't have anyone else in California to turn to. If she had a job she could find more friends, possibly. Once again the glass of water gets pushed in front of her. "I need you to sober up so you can drive," Babs informs her before turning back to tend to her job duties.

January once again huffs out a sigh. She was burdening Babs with her presence at her work. Thinking about it that way was more damaging to her ego than anything. She slaps herself mentally for being irresponsible like this, but she really didn't see another way but to complain to her best friend. "What time do you get off?" she questions her friend, taking a swig of water. "I'm working a double today," Babs grunts as she pulls out the keg from underneath the bar so she can have someone come and swap it out. "I have to work into the night," she informs January.

She knew she was desperate to forget about everything that had happened today and what had lead up to this but she wasn't going to enable her behavior. She just wished she could see herself as she saw her. Determined and more stubborn than a bull. She didn't know January could just give up like this. "So? Let's go out afterwards. I feel like dancing and you can get into the best clubs because of your model status," January tempts her, beginning to bounce up and down in her chair.

Babs could see out of the corner of her eye that her friends little dancing episode was starting to gain some attention from the men in the bar. Her lips press into a firm line across her face as she glares at the drunken woman in front of her. Going out after serving all day didn't sound that amazing. Babs grabs on to January's wrists, forcing her to stop and look at her with confusion in her eyes. "Jan, go home, clean up, treat yourself to pizza, and watch T.V. to your hearts content. Then call me in the morning and we can do brunch before my gig," she instructs her friend in a low and authoritative tone.

January merely laughs at her, causing Babs's cheeks to heat with frustration. She hated having to babysit drunk patrons, let alone her best friend. "I can't drive like this," January protests with a snide smirk appearing on her face. "Looks like you're stuck with me," January croons out, stretching her arm out in an attempt to touch her nose. Babs absentmindedly grabs on to her arm before it can even touch her, causing January to whine with pain. Her frustration had hit its peak. "I'll call you a cab, just stop making a scene. You're gaining all the guys attention around here," she whispers out in a huff under her breath while gazing around the patrons. They all seemed to be drooling over the drunken red-head alone at the bar.

"Ooh," she coyly purrs out while turning around to look at the people around her, causing Babs to reach out and catch her shoulder to swivel her back around. "No, not "ooh"," Babs hisses at her. "These guys are sleazebags, you'd be just a piece of meat for them," she states while glaring at a couple who appeared be threatening to approach her lone friend. "Maybe that's all I need," January slurs out.

Babs's brow furrows at the statement. She attempts to stifle a light chuckle from escaping her lips but it fails. If only sober January could see her right now, she'd be kicking herself. "No, Jan, it's not. I know you, you get attached way too easily," she waves her off as she goes back to work, by making a couple of drink orders for the servers in the bar. Her sudden absence made January stick her bottom lip out in a pout while watching her. Her whines begin to get even more drastic with every moment that Babs doesn't pay attention to her.

It isn't until she caves in and looks over at her when she rolls her eyes at the look. "You're my Buzz!" January jokingly sobs out, taking Babs's hand in her own. Babs shows her a sympathetic smile, she seemed to be calming down a bit from her drunken state. "And you're my Woody," she replies, pressing another kiss to the back of her hand.

Babs looks out into the crowd of patrons as the darkened bar begins to get even more packed with the presence of happy hour. This would mean it would be more of a hassle to keep the predators away from January, who's defenses were weakened by the alcohol she had been provided and the internal conflict of bombing yet another interview. A couple of guys perch themselves up at the bar a few seats down from January, Babs's notice their hungry looks over towards the sloppy drunk drunk. It was her time to shine as the mom friend that she had always been teased about being.

She slings her bar cloth over her shoulder before sighing. It was time to get to work. She pushes the glass of water towards January before leaving her side once again. "Now drink the damn water and don't talk to any of these bozo's. Let me handle them,"

_**~BOOK ONE: IRON MAN~**_

** THE WORLD SEEMS to spin every** time she closed her eyes. Her head was starting to throb. She groans at the pain, being careful not to drop her microwaved dinner as she makes her way towards the couch. It didn't matter how much she drank, nothing could ever mask how defeated she felt after the interview. Coming out to California she thought she'd be dining out every night, gallivanting around at high class social events.

The reality hit her broad across the face as she peers at her unappetizing microwaved dinner. Her stomach rumbles, wanting real actual food. She sighs as she turns on her T.V. trying to at least make good on part of her word with Babs. Truthfully she couldn't afford the pizza that Babs wanted her to get. As guilt ridden as she felt, there didn't seem to be a bright side to any of this.

She would have to return home soon to her parents, even though she couldn't stand to hear them say "I told you so". The gloomy clouds of Wisconsin would be the last thing she would see before she eventually died. She'd probably marry a lumberjack that her father would introduce her to. Lumberjacks always seemed appealing, especially to the outside world and to Hollywood but, January grew up in a town filled to the brim of them. They were anything but handsomely chiseled men that practically bled plaid.

Something soft brushes up against her legs, causing her to jump at the sudden contact. She peers down to look at the culprit behind the action. A small smile makes its way to her lips as she looks at the ragamuffin cat, rubbing against her legs. Jiji was the only thing that she really needed to provide for, and knowing her father's allergy to cats gave her plenty of motivation to try to scout for new jobs. January pats her lap, welcoming the cream and golden furred cat onto her. The cat purred affectionately as she stroked its long fur softly.

"Let's see what American Idol has in store for us, Jiji," January coos at the cat as she turns the television on. Regretfully, January takes a bit of what she assumes is beef but tastes and smells like the wet cat food she feeds to Jiji. If drinking too much wasn't enough to make her stomach too upset to flip inside out then this food definitely would. Unfortunately, it's all she has. She forces herself to eat the processed meat, if that's what it would even be classified as. She notes that it's still somewhat frozen in the middle, but still being half-drunk she refuses to get up again to reheat her food.

Watching the finals of the competition for American Idol was sure to take her mind off of her interview for the time being. She could picture herself being the publicist for one of the finalist. Sorting out their busy days, scheduling press tours, and events while giving them a good name. That's all she ever wanted to do. It was glamorous like being a movie star, it wasn't righteous like being a doctor, but to her it felt right. She thought it was her calling, but clearly it wasn't after the interviews.

After the finale, which took her breath away, she tunes away from the television screen with tears in her eyes. She could only imagine that this would be one of the last night's she could stay in this city, one of the last night's with Jiji. She felt like a failure. Her nose instantly becomes stuffy as she becomes congested from crying.

Her feet shuffle beneath her as she carries herself into the kitchen to throw away what's left of her unrecognizable dinner. The lights from Los Angeles twinkle brightly catching her attention from the kitchen window. She couldn't help but feel lost, like in the city is where she was meant to be, not in the suburbs in a worn down apartment with three windows maximum. The life of luxury she wanted was a few measly miles away from her but she couldn't make it.

The warmth of Jiji presses up against her legs once again, taking her mind off of what she was holding on to. Absentmindedly, she picks the cat up like a baby, cradling her in her arms as she sweeps her into the living room. "Oh Jiji, if it was just you and me for the rest of my life, I'd be just fine. But I need money," she whines, beginning to pout as she flops her entire body on to her couch, with Jiji on her chest.

Surprisingly enough this hadn't been the first time she had cried herself into a stupor since moving to Los Angeles. Her hands begin to pet Jiji in a soothing manner, hoping to eliviate some stress. As she turns her attention towards the television, she can't help but furrow her brows. She lets out a gasp as she recognizes the man on the television who's arm was snaked around a bubbly blonde model.

The television show that she had been watching was now doing after show interviews. It had been advertised to stay tuned after the show but she had thought it was interviews with the winner and the runner up, not Tony Stark. His smug smirk, and witty banter with the female reporter made her skin crawl with disgust. It was one thing to flirt with a girl in front of his date but to do it on public television live? It was repulsive. Perhaps, she could begin to feel grateful that she bombed the interview at Stark Industries. Covering for Tony Stark seemed like it was more than she could chew, especially since she was so inexperienced.

"Ugh!" she shouts in frustration as she turns the television off, tears starting to run down her face. It was like rubbing salt into her fresh wound. She lay back down on the couch, patting Jiji as she cuddled her on her chest. One day she knew she'd find her place in this world. One day.

* * *

A/N: Sorry for the short chapters! They'll get longer as soon as Tony is introduced!


	3. CHAPTER III

**CHAPTER THREE**

**( **FOUR MISSED MESSAGES** )**

**THE FAMILIAR HUM of the answering** machine buzzes to a stop after the phone stops ringing. January can hardly make out who's talking, the voice seems distant and fuzzy, unfamiliar but welcoming. She groans as she starts to stir, finally trying to wake up after a long night. Her head is still throbbing from the alcohol she had consumed yesterday. She had never gotten hang overs. She grimaces at this sign, the sign of her getting older.

The bright light seeping from the living room window was starting irritate her, along with the insistent sound of scratching coming from the other room. She easily identified the sound as Jiji in her litter box, it was something she had grown accustom to hearing but still hated the scratching sound of litter beneath the cats soft paws. Hesitantly, she looks at the clock on the wall for the time. "Two!" she shouts in surprise, quickly leaping up from the couch. She instantly regrets it as dizziness overcomes her, she grips her head as she tries her best to stop from collapsing.

"Ah god," she hisses in pain. Aside from her head throbbing, her neck and shoulders were hurting from the uncomfortable position of the couch. She clumsily stumbles over to the answering machine. She curses to herself as she sees the red numbers flash wildly across its tiny screen. Four missed messages just from last night and this morning alone. Had there been some emergency? She gnaws on her bottom lip as she presses the play button. All the while, Jiji stood at the bottom of her feet rubbing up against her, meowing. It was way past breakfast time for her. "Sorry, Jiji," she mumbles as she heads towards the food bowl. The faster she got the cat to stop meowing the faster her guilt could let up.

_"__First message received: September fifth, two-thousand-two, at __nine-sixteen__ a.m."_ the cold voice of the answering machine listed off. _"Hey, it's me,"_ Babs's voice sounded groggy but nevertheless more awake than she was over the speaker of the phone. _"I was just calling to see if you still wanted to get brunch before my gig. I know you're probably hungover so maybe some good diner food will solve the problem. Or any kind of food. It's up to you. Call me back. Love you,"_

The answering machine whines before it stops, making January wince. She had totally forgotten about brunch. She kicks herself. Horrible diner food sounded pleasant and what her body needed right now. _"Message two received: September fifth, two-thousand-two, at ten-fifty-three a.m."_ the machine once again listed off. _"Hey, I haven't heard from ya. I think you're still sleeping which is fine. We can do brunch at another time. My gig is at twelve thirty so I have to go. It's the stupid "before and after picture" thing. I'm "before". I'll call you later tonight. Love you,"_

The answering machine hisses to a stop. January's bottom lip protrudes out in guilt. She always knew Babs got worked up before her shoots. She was probably a ball full of stress right about now. January remembers her telling her about this gig, thankfully she told her where it was shooting at. She could probably stop by with an apology muffin. She trudges her way into the bathroom to sprucen herself up for the day.

Nothing could slam her spirit more than walking into a room full of models and looking out of place. The dark circles under her eyes conveyed that she hadn't slept a wink but she could distinctly remember feeling tired. She shrugs it off. It must've been a side effect of the alcohol she drank, along with the pounding headache. A while ago in Chicago, a coworker had taught her the recipe for a hangover cure, of course it was miraculously slipping her mind today.

"Something with Sprite...I think?" January whispers to herself under he breath as she places her tooth brush in her mouth. Even she had to admit her breath was killer this morning, probably from snoring away on the couch. After involuntarily gagging herself and making her stomach flip inside of her, she made her way back out to the living room, rolling her eyes as the answering machine played the third message (a spam message telling her she had just won a trip). "Message deleted," the robotic voice sung out after she had clicked a button on the device.

"Message four received: September fifth, two-thousand-two, at one-thirty-four p.m." January braced herself for yet another spam call or worse a call from her parents. The last thing she needed to hear today was their voices over the full end of the receiver asking how L.A. was treating her and wishing for her to return home or at least back to the Midwest. She sits down on the couch, head against her palm, grumbling to herself about how much she didn't want to hear, "I told you so" from her mother and father. "Good morning, this message is for January Jenner. This is Pepper Potts from Stark Industries,"

January choked on her own spit out of pure shock when she heard the name. There was no way that she was actually calling her. She sucked in a deep breath. Maybe she was calling to tell her she wasn't qualified to handle the job, especially since it was such a renowned and large company. She tries her best not to get her hopes up but she can't help herself when she stands up to pace by the machine. "We would like to schedule a second interview and possibly offer you a position as a personal publicist. If you could give me a call back when your available that would be great. Have a nice day,"

Even over the phone Pepper's voice sounded sweet. Excitement bubbled up inside her, to the point she was visibly giddy from the phone call. A laugh of relief escapes her lips. Finally, this could actually be the big break she was looking for. Her hands instinctively run through her red locks, trying to soothe herself from the excitement. Not only would this be her first job in her field but it would be for a big client, Stark Industries was well known throughout the world as being one of the biggest profitting companies in engineering.

It was almost as big as Disney but without the theme parks or the kids movies. It was also well renowned for the prodigy of Tony Stark, who was considered to be one of the worlds brightest minds when it came to engineering and manufacturing and business but also as a Playboy with a new girl on his arm with each public outing. She couldn't wait to rub it in her parents face if she actually got the job. Her interests perk up as she remembers that Pepper wanted to do a second interview.

Absentmindedly, she heads over to grab the phone, her hand stopping a few inches away from it. She cringes at the thought of another interview. Second interviews usually meant meeting with more important people. As she thought of it even more the only people that could possibly be higher than Pepper were Tony Stark or Obadiah Stane. She hadn't pictured either of them being the kindest people. Even thinking about being close to them made her knees want to buckle beneath her. However, she held her head up high. She didn't come all the way out here to get intimidated by two of the worlds richest people. She huffs out a heavy sigh before picking up the phone.

_**~BOOK ONE: IRON MAN~**_

**SHE KNEW SHE was out of** place from the moment she stepped on to the lot of where the photo shoot was taking place. She tries her best not to look amazed at all the beautiful and handsome models as they pass her. A relationship was the last thing on her mind at the moment. Her grip tightens on the strap of her purse that she had slung over her shoulder, as she scanned the crowded room for her friend.

A faint blush appears on her cheeks as she absentmindedly runs her eyes down the body of a shapely male model. He sends her a wink making her blush even more feverishly while a nervous smile crosses her lips. She had always been attracted to Babs's co-workers but this was new. "Jan?" a questioning voice calls out to her, regretfully grabbing her attention away from the man. Her eyes meet with her friends who is perched on a folding chair, her legs crossed and a confused expression lying beneath her dark eyes.

January attempts to force a smile out as she strides over to her friend. She tries her best not to remark about what she was currently wearing (which were just her skivvies). "Hey, aren't you cold?" she's unable to refrain from poking fun at Babs, a smug smirk placing itself on her lips. "A bit nipple-y in here for me -"

"Why are you here?" Babs cuts her off, her voice deep with frustration. She knew her occupation wasn't ideal but it was more successful than being unemployed like January. Sheepishly, January pulls out a pair of sparkling earrings from the bottom of her purse and passes it off to Babs. The earrings belonged to her but Babs had always longed for them, asking to borrow them whenever she had a special occasion. A sign that would let bygones be bygones.

Babs's jaw drops to the floor as she holds them in her hand, giving it a little shake to see if they were actually real. With a large smile on her face she looks back up at January. "I'm here to say sorry about missing our brunch date and coming and getting wasted at the bar yesterday. Those are for you since I was a hassle," January explains before she can even open her mouth to question the action. "They're beautiful but you don't need to give me these," she explains, still looking at the earrings in the palm of her hand. "I wasn't really expecting you to remember brunch. I figured you'd be sleeping," she shrugs off.

"I know, I just feel bad," January admits, her feet shuffling on the ground. Babs rolls her eye jokingly. That was January, act first, think last and apologize with gifts. It's how she learned that most of January's friends before her had used her for. All they had to do was guilt trip her and she'd bend over backwards for them. But maybe she could use the earrings once before she slipped them back.

"How are you feeling today?" she hums out while leaning back in her chair. January scoffs at the question. "Like my age is finally starting to catch up with me. I didn't wake up until two," she states as she plops herself down in the chair next to her, slouching down into a relaxed position. "Uh-huh," Babs responds in a matter-of-fact tone. She knew she'd be hung over the next day. "And I got your voicemails and I felt bad," January continues.

"Oh!" she exclaims before smacking Babs's thigh. The sensation of it stung since she was practically bare. Babs rubbed the spot that was turning red. Clearly January was excited about something. "I also got a voicemail from Pepper Potts from Stark Industries, she wants to do a second interview. It's no big deal or anything," January finishes in a nonchalant tone acting as if it were old news.

"Are you serious? Congratulations babe!" Babs gleefully exclaims, giving January's arm a squeeze. "Thank you," January says. "It's just a second interview so nothing is set in stone until afterwards," she informs her. The last thing she wanted to do was hype herself up for getting a big job to not actually land it. "But this is the farthest you've come in your pursuit of job hunting. What do you say we celebrate?" Babs encourages with a sly smile. January slumps lower in the chair, groaning at the thought of going out. "Can't it be after the interview when I know I have the job? Otherwise we'll be celebrating for no reason -"

"Nonsense. This is a big deal. We need to properly celebrate," Babs chides, knowing she'd be able to con her into going out. "Besides, we're hitting up a club after the shoot today," she continues before stopping abruptly to wave to the man that January was eyeballing earlier. He returned the kind gesture, stealing yet another glance at January. Immediately she sits up in her seat, well aware of his lingering presence. She offers him a kind smile before he's taken back by an assistant to stand in the middle of the shoot floor. All she could think of is what she would give to actually be held by him. "I'll take you out and I'll buy you drinks," Babs states, interrupting her daydream.

January gives the man yet another glance before looking back at Babs who's face told her she knew it all. She knew the game she was playing and she was like putty in her delicate, small hands. "Well if you're paying. I'm not saying no to a free drink," January caves. Babs whoops with excitement, stretching her arms out above her head. "But I can't stay out too late. I already called her back. I have the interview tomorrow at one-thirty-four," January adds, her voice was unsteady almost a whine. She was serious but she knew Babs wouldn't take it that way.

"I promise you won't get shit faced," Babs swears. January furrows her brows at the statement. She usually didn't go down without a fight easily. She didn't know what she was getting at but she didn't want to find out. "Cross your heart?" she questions, her voice low and uneasy. Something fishy was about to happen. She knew it. "And hope to die," Babs finishes as she drags her index finger against the flesh of there chest.

Even though her words seemed to be true, January still felt like there was a "but" to all of this. Meaning she'd pay for her drinks but she had to drink as many as she bought her. However, Babs was her friend who genuinely wanted to see her excel in life. Maybe after her mental breakdown at the bar yesterday made her ease up on her. Her defenses were finally let down after a moment of silent glaring. She holds on to the strap of her purse as she stands up from the folding chair. A sly smile perches on Babs's lips as she looks up at her causing January's eyes to roll. "I'm counting on you,"


	4. CHAPTER IV

**CHAPTER FOUR**

**(** THE MYSTERY MAN **)**

**JANUARY'S**** FEET SHUFFLE along the concrete** of the sidewalk as she tries her best not to slip and fall in the shoes that Babs let her borrow. Beside her is her best friend who's heels are a lot higher than hers, but she walks high, confidently. January, too stubborn to admit that she should've chosen a different pair struggles to keep up with Babs's long legs. There was bound to be a few wandering eyes looking at the duo as they skipped the people waiting in the line outside of the unmarked building. Lights spewed out from parts of the door, illuminating the street in colorful patterns.

January could care less about the hateful glares she was receiving as she passed them, she was more concentrated on not falling flat on her face at the moment. She had a sinking feeling about going out tonight, one being that she was probably going to be forced to drink even though she really didn't want to, or that she was going to injure herself and end up walking into the interview with a busted up lip or a bruised chin.

The most irking part was actually having to see Babs's co-workers. They were beautiful, yet catty and not the brightest. She could never hold a conversation with one of them for too long without becoming overwhelming bored. Babs was truly an anomaly. This wasn't going to be a night she could actually enjoy. Her hand instinctively reaches out to grab in to Babs's, as she attempts to climb the stairs up to the pounding club. She tries to steady herself as she stops a step away from her friend as the bouncer at the door stops them. "Babs Ramsay!" she can barely hear her friend even speak to the burly man over the beating bass of the club music.

She avoids any glares she receives from the people waiting in line, some much more good looking than her, more deserving and more desperate to get in the club to dance the night away. The bouncer eyes January for a moment before looking to the model. She flashes him a dazzling smile, the one that got her into the business. "She's my plus one, she should be marked on there!" she shouts to him, whole pointing at the sheet of paper on the clipboard. January shrinks in size as the bouncer continues to look on to her as if she didn't belong. She didn't. She knew that. She didn't some meat head sizing her up to tell her that.

In one gruff motion the bouncer juts his head back and moves to the side, allowing passage into the overcrowded club. It's a miracle that she got in, she knew that Babs was lying to make her a plus one, like they actually had those marked on their. Perhaps he was being generous. Whatever it was, January was thankful for it. Babs wraps her arms around January's shoulder, gently moving them from side to side in an effort to get her to loosen up and dance with her as they moved towards the crowded dance floor.

Seeing all those people all standing next to one another, rubbing and grinding, trying to find some space between each other gave her anxiety. She had been used to this kind of scene back in college but she was too old for this now. A part of her wondered if Babs would ever grow up with her or if she'd be stuck in her college days mentality for the rest of her life. She could feel the best of the music pound through the soles of her feet as Babs lead her through the center of the dance floor in an effort to find her colleagues - whoever they were this week. That was the glory of being a model, she didn't have to work with the same people twice if she didn't want to, she could pick and choose what jobs she wanted to do, and it came with perks such as being able to be a part of exclusive night clubs.

A couple years ago January had thought this was the life she wanted to live, she wanted to stay up all night partying rather than studying for class that she needed to pass to graduate. At that moment in her life she was jealous of Babs. As the years passed though, she could tell that she was growing out of the phase. Partying didn't seem to scratch that itch for her anymore. Although, the one thing that Babs could hold against her was that she actually had two jobs whereas she had none. Thank God for Stark Industries.

Her mood perks up at the thought of having a job. Finally, something that may be worth her time and to pay her bills instead of sitting on the dwindling stack of cash she's kept since the move out here. A slight yank on her wrist from Babs and she's pulled off to the side by her, away from the swaying bodies. Instead she finds herself clutching on to the sticky counter top of the bar in the middle of the club, its surface illuminating with bright lights underneath making each drink look like it came from another planet. A planet that she couldn't afford.

"Two Fireball's please!" her friend shouts to the bartender, who nods to her before turning his back to grab the whiskey. January scrunches her nose up at the thought of the sweet but burning taste of the alcohol, it made a shiver run down her spine. She wasn't that big of a fan of whiskey or any cinnamon related foods or drinks. Yet, the shot wasn't as bad as a shot of Patron. It was more risk-free if anything. Babs forced her to clink their glasses together before downing the amber colored liquid. It bites her back as she chokes it down. She shudders as she slams the glass back down on the bar, sliding it across to get it as far away from her as it could. The last thing she wanted was for more alcohol to enter her system, especially after yesterday's ordeal.

"Ready for another?" Babs shouted into her ear. Although, January shook her head feverishly Babs gave her a devilish smirk before turning to the bartender to fetch him for more drinks. "I'll take a captain and coke and she'll have a -" Babs looked at her friend with a pleading look. "Water," January mumbled, forcing Babs to roll her eyes. "A long island!"

January opens her mouth to protest but remembers that she was only here to celebrate with Babs and she was buying all the drinks. She didn't want to offend her in any way. She just had to be discreet about shoving her drinks off for the ones she was going to be receiving all night. All she could do was helplessly watch the club goers as she waited on Babs. All the women looked glammed up, with their mid-drifts exposed, wearing stiletto heels as they wound their bodies against a partner. Most of their eyeliner was smudged from the sweat that was building on their face. Being in the frey seemed less and less appealing.

She jumps in surprise as she feels Babs press her cool drink against the flesh of her arm. Babs eyes her as she takes a long sip of her drink. "Seriously, babe, you need to loosen up," she nudges January in a lame attempt to make her bop along with the music. January shakes her head as if she's shaking her nerves off, her face looking paler than usual under the dim lighting. "I'm just worried about the whole interview thing. I can't afford to mess this up," she whines causing her friend to roll her eyes scoff. She's heard this about a million times with her other interviews. January was always a worry wart. "Yes or else you won't be able to afford living here. I know this, I know this. Have you ever thought about dating somebody rich? I know a few people -"

"I'm not going to be one of your setups," January coolly interrupts, flashing her a glare before taking another sip of her drink. "Besides, I don't think I could be a stay-at-home wife," she chokes out, coughing a little as the alcohol burned her throat. "Man what would I give if I could find a rich husband," Babs hums out dreamily while leaning up against the bar. January's brows raise at the statement. They were in the perfect place to find her a rich husband - so long if the man was telling the truth. "Why don't you? I mean, you have all these "connections"," January mocked, moving her only free hand to air-quote. A small smirk appears on her face as she watches her friends mood sour.

"I don't date people I work with," Babs says with an eye roll. January merely nodded her head. That wasn't true. Babs was notorious for having the worst luck at trying to find a stable relationship in her line of work. Whatever one she was at. During modelling she could go after rich men, men who would dangle the worlds shiniest jewels in front of her and retract it once she became too invested in their relationship. At the bar she could potentially find someone but they're usually just one night stands and not really up her ally.

January couldn't blame it all on the men as well, Babs got a little too comfortable a little too fast. Of course once a man in his prime hears the word relationship come out of her mouth they were bound to dash. Babs leads them to a section in the club, forcing January out of her comfort zone of staying near the bar where less people were bound to elbow her in the side while dancing. As soon as they exited the grove of dancing people, January's already humdrum face turned into a flat out scowl as she saw the beautiful and chiseled features of Babs's co-workers. A crowd she was displeased to be with. She hated having conversations with any model, aside from Babs. It was just irritating.

Babs turns back to introduce everyone to her best friend only to see a sight that she was too used to seeing. January's arms fold across her chest, a scowl placing itself on her face. She looked severely unapproachable, and that's what she was aiming for, somewhat. But it wasn't what Babs had intended to do, she couldn't just be cooped up with January at her side the whole night. "Are you okay?" Babs questions, her brows furrowing as January rolls her eyes. "I'm here," she huffs out, stepping into the lounge that had been reserved for the models. "These are my colleagues," Babs whispers, closing in on her ear. "Please play nice with them and at least act like your having a good time,"

January tries her best to splay a fake smile on her face as her friend warily keeps a watchful eye on her. It's not long after the warning that Babs ends up ditching her, leaving her to her own devices. January huffs out a sigh as she stands awkwardly, tracing the rim of her glass with her index finger out of boredom. An uproar of excitement buzzes throughout the club, people appeared to be cheering for someone. January raises a brow in question at this but doesn't investigate further. Instead she perches herself on a plush leather couch, sipping on what was left of her watered down drink. Her eyes linger on the party in front of her. It's not like she didn't want to celebrate her second interview, she just didn't feel welcome celebrating it with people with two brain cells.

Babs was beautiful, yes, but she also went to to college only to drop out. She would soon learn that modelling comes and goes with age. Then maybe she wouldn't shove her off on her own while she danced with her beautiful friends, alcohol splashing out of her cup. Her cup. January looks down at her own glass, the alcohol was surely gone, the only liquid remaining was the water falling from the melting ice. She places the glass on the table in front of her, before resting her head in the palm of her hand, leaning on the side of the couch. She wanted to go home, get some rest before her interview tomorrow but there was no way Babs would let her leave this early without an argument. She couldn't argue with her, especially after she spent yesterday babying her about her financial woes and stress.

She finally catches Babs's attention, pointing to the glass in front of her on the table. Babs rolls her eyes and points to the second bar behind the sectioned off area of the club. January glares back at her friend, she didn't even offer to accompany her. However, if she was stuck here she wasn't going to be sober enough to actually remember any of it. Luckily the reserved lounge was far less occupied than the actual club itself. She didn't have to push or wave down the bartender. She simply ordered two long islands and was on her way back to her seat. She didn't feel the need nor want to leave her spot until Babs was ready to leave. That being said, the two drinks should carry over for that amount of time. Hopefully.

The cushion on the couch gives in next to her, alerting her of someone's presence. She gives the man a quick glance at his features. A goatee, sunglasses, and a sleek black suit. Not exactly a party outfit but he was obviously trying to grab her attention by smiling at her. She rolls her eyes and tries to scooch closer to the side of the couch. Here she thought the night would be easy, and she wouldn't have to shoo away anyone.

She stared down Babs, hoping that she would actually look over and save her. However, the man didn't attempt to move closer to her, and instead leaned forward, looking down at what appeared to by a cell phone. Slowly but surely, after a while, January began to let her guard down. Perhaps he was just being polite with giving her a smile. "You look like you'd rather be somewhere else," he comments. His voice alarms her, making her heart leap in her chest from the sudden scare. She peers over to him.

He hadn't moved from his spot, he was still tapping away on a phone or a device. She gave him a confused look. Did he actually even speak to her? He places whatever he was tinkering with in his suit pocket, along with his sunglasses. He looked familiar but she couldn't figure out where he was from. Perhaps it was the alcohol and the darkness from the club that made his features somewhat indistinguishable. January raises her brows and takes a sip of her drink before answering, "What gave that away?"

"Well," the man starts, leaning back against the couch. "For starters you keep glaring at the party in front of you," he points over to the cluster of models where Babs was. She tried her best not to roll her eyes at the sight of her friend sitting across a guys lap while letting him do a body shot from her. "Are you with them?" he questions, a smirk growing on his lips as he watches the party. A look of disgust crosses her face. Her? A model? "No," she says insulted. The man returns his attention to her and places his hands up at his sides as if he were surrendering. She scoffs as she shakes her head, taking another sip of her drink. As if she were pretty enough to be a model. "Why are you here?" he asks, breaking the awkwardness. "Forced to come," she shortly answers.

"By your friends?" he pries.

"Friend," she corrects.

"Where is she?"

January points towards Babs in the center of the model crowd as she dances with two of her co-workers. It looked like she wasn't going home alone tonight. "So you _are_ a model," the man teases, chuckling softly to himself as he watches her scowl. "I mean you're pretty enough to be one,"

"And there it is," January states as she takes a long sip of her drink. He chuckles at her response. January's gaze shifts over to Babs once again as she watches her turn around and kiss her co-worker. She notices out of the corner of her eye that the man has taken out his cell phone once again, looking down at it. She uses this time to take a sip of her drink. More like a chug. Her drink is almost gone by the time she finishes sucking it down. Good thing she had another drink. "So why aren't you a model like your friend?" he questions.

"Because I have an education,"

The man snorts at the response, still tinkering with whatever he was doing. It was clear she didn't have his full attention. "Still doesn't explain why you're not hanging out with them," he notes.

"I would rather stay silent on a couch, than saying blatantly obvious things to start a conversation, like "the table is round", "the DJ is a man", "the music is loud". Stuff like that,"

The man Snickers from beside her. "I like your wit," he mumbles out although it was hard to hear the actual compliment. January stretches her arms in front of her. The downside of drinking was that it made her tired yet restless at the same time. "We're supposed to be celebrating me getting another interview," she says, gaining the man's attention once again. "But I guess I got shafted,"

"Celebrating? Why didn't you say so!" he cheerily states. He must've been more drunk than what he lead on to be. She carefully and cautiously watches him as he stands up from the couch. Now she was getting abandoned by the only person who had approached her all night. "I'll be back," he slurs out, before dashing away from him. Although, she's relieved that she was no longer accompanied by a total, drunk, stranger but she did like his vigor and how he wasn't afraid to speak to her. Now her only entertainment was to watch the crowd.

Maybe she could ditch since Babs was busy sucking face with her co-worker. January slams the rest of her drink before starting the second. There was no way she was just going to waste twenty dollars on drinks and not drink them. She could already feel herself start to drift into her woozy, drunken state. She had been feeling a little fuzzy since the first drink but slamming the second drink and getting a quarter of the way through the third was starting to have damaging effects on her. Suddenly the couch shifts once again.

A drunken smile comes across her lips as she looks at the man who had left her earlier. His sunglasses hanging loosely from his collar now, as he swayed in his seat. "One for you, m'lady," he slurs as he passes her a rather large shot glass. She can't help but giggle at his antics. The alcohol really did go to her head too fast. "What is this?" she asks somewhat loudly. It feels as if the volume of the room had amplified with the surge of alcohol running through her veins. "Liquid courage!"

"Smells like jäger!" she notes as she smells the sickeningly sweet aroma. It's enough to make her gag. "That's because it is," he replies with a smirk. "Where's the beer? I thought jägerbombs had beer around them?"

"Do you want to be hungover tomorrow?" he sarcastically remarks, making her let out a small chuckle. She shakes her head as she sniffs the shot once more. "To whatever you're celebrating!" he exclaims as he places his shot glass in the middle of them. "To job interviews!" she lazily corrects, as she taps the table in front of them with her shot glass along with him before downing the liquid. The taste of it makes her cringe. She notably shakes in her seat as the after taste hits her like a freight train. "I have never in my life witnessed someone take a shot like it was a drink," he laughs giddily, watching January grieve and regret what she had just ingested. "Are you okay?" he asks, placing his hand on her back as she coughs. "It's just," she cringes at the after taste once again. "_Really_ strong,"

"Well get ready for the Patron because that's next,"

"Oh, God, no," January groans, causing amusement to the strange man. "Thank you," she says after she's recovered from the shot. She runs her hand through her hair, throwing out any bobby pins in the way. "No problem, no one should celebrate big things on their own," he says, as he grabs on to the drink in front of him. She didn't even realize that he was drinking a scotch until now. He was bound to be plastered. But after that shot, so was she.

"So which one is your friend, again? I didn't get a clear view from your gesture earlier," he asks once again, pointing to each of the models. January squints trying to find her friend, only to find her back against the wall with the man she was kissing earlier. She could leave at anytime now. But the man was keeping her pleasant company. "The one currently playing tonsil hockey with the guy in the corner," she jokes, pointing to her friend. The man's brows furrow as he looks at them, a sudden look of cringe and disgust coming across his features. January silently chuckles to herself as she watches him.

"Want to join in on the action?" he teases, leaning closer to her. The closeness didn't seem to bother her, he was still a good distance to where he couldn't try anything. "No," she dismisses as she takes a sip of her drink. "Just thought I'd ask," he shrugs off. "You know, I have a thing for redheads," he states confidently. January scoffs at the bold statement. "You and just about the rest of the male population," she takes another long sip of her diminishing drink. Once this was gone, she would be gone. "Someone already use the line on you?"

"Several times," she informs him, her words starting to slur together. It was true but she was used to it. It came with the territory of the genes. The man looks around the club like he was suddenly hyper aware of something that put him on edge. "I mean, who could blame them? You are the definition of a beautiful, fiery, redhead. Where's you're family from?" he lists off effortlessly.

January snorts at his antics. "Ancestor wise, Scotland,"

"Ancestor wise?" he repeats in a lingering tone. "You said that on purpose so I'd have to ask the question of where you're from. So where are you from?

January blushes out of embarrassment, before flashing him a smile and answering sheepishly, "Wisconsin,"

The man's brows lift in surprise before drunkenly giggling. January joins in, although it was more of a disguise. She knew the man probably felt pity for her as she was out of her element. This was enough to sober her up. "And you made the move to one of the toughest cities in the country," he wheezes after his laughing fit. "How are you being accustomed to everything? Because I can show you a good time in L.A." he says in a suggestive manner. January rolls her eyes as she takes a sip of her drink.

Maybe his charm was starting to rub off, or maybe she was getting to sober to talk to him. "What's your goal here, if you don't mind me asking? Make fun of me and then take me home?" she asks in a genuine matter-of-fact tone, leaning on her elbow as if she actually wanted to hear is answer. "My goal?" The man reiterates, seeming a little flabbergasted at her straight forwardness. "Well, I thought it was obvious. Talk to the beautiful redhead from across the bar that looked lonely, maybe she's from - where'd you say you were from again?"

"Wisconsin,"

"Maybe she's from Wisconsin and needs someone to show her around and maybe -"

"And maybe she'd somehow magically get shown your sheets?" she smirks, as she watches his mouth open in shock. He's motionless for a moment, as of he was trying to recover from her accusation. January sips on her drink triumphantly, the action makes the man smirk. "Your words not mine," he quickly states in his defense. "But if you wanted to, I'm not complaining. I wouldn't mind having you in my bed,"

Another eye roll from January. She feels dizzy after this one as she places her drink down on the table. Perhaps she had just had one too much. It was best to cut herself off now before she got any worse and _did_ end up in bed with the mystery man. Although his features in the darkness of the club were starting to become blurrier and blurrier as the moments passed on. He would have a shot with her if she continued to drink. That's not how she wanted to start the day tomorrow, waking up in a stranger's bed with an important interview to go to.

January yawns as she stretches her arms out. "Well unfortunately it's past my bedtime and I have an interview tomorrow," she lazily informs him, the drinks and exhaustion hitting her like a freight train. "Do you need a ride home? You've been drinking. I can take you," he kindly offers but, January remembers that he's also been matching drinks with her and he was already slurring his words when he had settled down next to her.

"No, I think I'm fine. I'll take a cab," she attests, dizzily standing up, almost stumbling down because of the heels. She grunts in protest as she feels the man's arm enclose around her to make sure she didn't fall. She uses this opportunity to take the heels off, she didn't care if she walked through the club barefoot, she knew it was against the rules but she was leaving anyways. The man begins to speak up once again, "At least let me pay for it -"

"You already got me a shot. That's payment enough," January stops him from offering anything more. The man was generous but she knew that he thought generosity bought him a ticket to her place. She presses a tight lip smile towards him. "Thank you for celebrating with me,"

"Sorry you have bad friends," he simply states with no filter, it was enough to make her burst out with a chuckle. "I like you," she mumbles out under her breath, sloppily making her way over to where the models have taken their place. Babs had finished kissing the man she was with, just relaxing on his lap. "Hey, I'm gonna head out!" she shouts over the crowd of voices, while waving to Babs. Nothing. She just stared blankly at her before giggling and waving back. She was too drunk. But thankfully that meant she didn't have to get an earful of why she wasn't with her the whole night.

As she descends the steps of the enclosed area where only "V.I.P."s reigned she hears the mystery mans familiar voice ring in her ear. She turns to look up to see him standing behind the belted off area, scotch in hand, glasses strewn across the collar of his shirt. "Wait, I didn't get your name," he gasps out as if he had ran all the way over to her just to ask. Even though the man seemed kind, and he acted as if his intentions were true and good, she knew no man at a nightclub could be trusted. She could give him a fake name, as that is what she would usually do but, she did honestly like him. A cruel yet coy smirk plays on her lips, "I'm sure our paths will cross again,"

She turns on her heel before he has time to protest or ask what that even means. Even she didn't know what it meant. With her shoes in hand, she tosses up her hand to him, not even sparing a parting look. "Goodnight," she sings out. The man smirks at her as he watches her leave. That was a kind of woman he had never met before at a nightclub. A smart one.


	5. CHAPTER V

**CHAPTER FIVE**

**( **THE STUPIDEST LUCK** )**

**"YEAH, I'M GETTING ready for the** interview right now, mom," January hisses to her mother over the phone. She had gotten home around one-thirty in the morning, drunk off her ass. The alcohol really didn't hit her until she was in the cab, not talking to anyone. She was rocking a killer headache and her mother's trill voice was enough to make her want to punch a wall. Of course, she didn't tell her mother she went out last night, her mother would be mortified, or worse she'd actually fly to California and literally kill her. It was a miracle that she actually got up this morning to prepare for the interview.

However, because of how crucial it was for her to get the job and seal the deal, her stomach wouldn't stop churning, plus with the alcohol leaving her system, there was a high probability she was going to vomit. Her hand shakily reached for her eyeliner, only to stop when she saw her hands shaking. She huffs out a puff of air, trying to steady her nerves. _"You sound nervous, honey,"_ her mother coos over the phone. Although most people may take it as a sign of a caring mother January took it as disingenuous. She knew how her mother operated, she knew she would give anything to bring her back home so she could analyze every part of her life. "It's a little nerve-wracking, it's a big company -"

_"That promotes death!"_ her father's voice rings in the background. It was obvious that he was listening in on the conversation. "I thought you were into that dad, being a red-blooded conservative," January retorts while leaning in towards the mirror to pick the imperfections of her face, specifically her eyebrows. _"Not when my daughter is on the line," _he replies gruffly, forcing January to roll her eyes. He had always been protective of her, after all, she was his only daughter. His little flower. "Okay, well it's either work for a weapons manufacturing company or starve," she states. _"Or you could come back home!"_ her mother is quick to reply in a cherry voice.

_"Yeah, with your degree you could work anywhere you'd want,"_ her father chimes in, sounding equally as excited. A job like this in Wisconsin? Not likely. Unless she was working for the Packers - they really weren't famous for anything besides them and even that was iffy. "Yeah? Like where?" January asks, her voice sounding monotone. Her father grunts as he thinks. _"Anywhere. The insurance agency, the vet office, the police department -"_

"And all those would be good for me and my degree, how? Do you even know what I majored in?"

The line is silent for a while. She had officially stumped her parents with a simple and obvious question that most parents should know. _"Advertising?"_ her father's voice sounded unsure. She was the youngest of four children, of course, they'd forget. "Public relations," she hisses out. Although they appeared to be over-loving, nurturing parents they didn't even make an appearance at her graduation due to her brother, Conan, getting in a little trouble with the fuzz. That was more important than watching her walk up to the dean and nabbing her diploma, more important than the years and money she spent learning about what she wanted to do most. January considered them to be neglectful at times, which came with the territory of being the youngest.

_"__Public relations!"_ her mother exclaims as if she had known all along and was just testing her, however her father grunts in disapproval. _"What's that again?"_ he questions, making January groan internally. It wasn't like she had already told them several times. As she opens her mouth to speak her mother quickly answers him in a hushed tone. _"She deals with celebrities and their drama in the magazines,"_ her mother reminds her father in a scolding manner. January can't help but slide her hand down her face out of frustration. "That's not what I do," she tries to clarify but her father talks over her. _"I don't see the problem here, you have very good relations with the public over here. Are you saying that's not adequate for you? That you'd rather work for a hot-shot celebrity?"_

January hesitates for a moment, letting her father's words sink in before she slowly answers, "Yes,"

She knew the longer she waited to answer the question the more ridiculous he sounded for not knowing how her industry worked. "That's what my degree is for,"

_"Lousy, degree,"_ her father harrumphs. January pinches the bridge of her nose in irritation. "And that's not what a publicist does. I handle people's livelihoods. I manage their schedules, who speaks to who, I give out statements when they don't want to -"

_"So you're a glorified assistant?"_ he grumbles. Once again January restrains herself from lashing out at her father. It wasn't her fault that they didn't go to college, nor did any of her brothers, they wouldn't completely understand. It's enough to make her headache with frustration, something she didn't need at the moment as she prepared for her interview. "Well, this has been a super encouraging conversation to have before my big interview. Hopefully, I won't bomb it and have all of my dreams crushed," she says sarcastically over the line.

_"What a shame that'd be," _her father retorts. She can feel her blood start to bubble up as her hopes were quickly starting to wither away. She wouldn't let him discourage her, that's exactly what he wanted. _"Oh, stop,"_ she hears her mother cluck over the phone. _"Jan, baby, you're going to do great. We love you bunches,"_ her mother's cheery voice drones over the receiver making it sound fuzzy, especially when she fakes kissing sounds into the receiver. January sticks out her tongue in disgust before bidding her parents farewell.

January sucks in a deep gulp of air as she grabs ahold of the edge of her sink, phone clattering to the floor. Her hands were shaking and her knees felt weak like they were going to give in at any time. Her mind becomes violently fuzzy as she felt her stomach lurch forward. Not only was she hungover but the nerves that she was triggering for this interview seemed to be causing her stomach to flop. She groans in agony as she steadies herself to stand up. Her face was paler than usual. As long as she didn't feel this way while at the interview she would be fine. It was all in her head anyway, at least that's what she tried to convince herself it was. There was no way she was going to vomit after getting her makeup all done for this.

Below, Jiji brushes up against her legs, mewing loudly. January slaps herself mentally as she stares down at the small cat, of course, she had forgotten to feed Jiji in all this mess. "I'm sorry, pookie," she tuts in a baby voice, picking the cat up in her arms and holding her like an infant. The cat quickly squirms out of her hands, scratching her chest in the process. January hisses in pain, as she follows the cat out of the bathroom. If the pain wasn't a wake-up call to stop moping around, then nothing would help.

"Mommy's going to be gone for a little while," she coos at the cat, as she fills a cup full of food, causing Jiji to howl in excitement. "Just don't get into any trouble," she states, filling her bowl up. January places a light kiss on the top of her head (or at least attempts to as the cat squirms to get to her food), before giving her one last look as she heads out the door.

_**~ BOOK ONE: IRON MAN ~**_

**THINGS ARE DIFFERENT this time around** as she comes in for her interview. Instead of just sitting out in the lobby, the receptionist guides her down into a room - presumably a meeting room - where she's instructed to wait until Pepper comes. The room is certainly darker than Pepper's office, however, she only assumed that was because of the dark interior and the lack of windows. All the way down the table, sitting perched upon a wall was a flat-screen TV. It was new. Something she would only see in movies that portrayed someone as poor but still make enough money to live in Manhattan and afford a flat-screen TV. Other than that, the meeting room felt lifeless. There were bookshelves to her right, but those were just for decor purposes and not for actual reading or fact-finding she assumed. Everything about the building seemed a little pretentious to her. Whether it be the newfound tech or the overly expensive decorations that she wished she could afford.

She jumps in surprise as she hears the door open, her heart starting to beat faster as she's greeted by Pepper. Although she looks like she's been through hell, like she had just got done yelling at people, she still manages to straighten her posture and display a welcoming smile as she rests her gaze upon January.

"Miss Jenner, how are you today?" she greets, extending her hand once again for her to take. January quickly and discreetly brushes the palm of her hand off on her skirt to wipe off the nervous sweat before encasing her hand with Pepper's. "I'm good. You as well?" she questions, trying to make her voice sickeningly sweet.

"Oh, I'm great," she forces herself to say with a clenched jaw. A clear sign that she was upset. January narrows her eyes at her in confusion before shrugging it off and giving her an awkward smile. "Before we start, we have to wait for Mister Stark," Pepper breathes out, hoping it would come across as sincere but she can detect a sense of dread (almost exhaustion) in her voice. "Oh," January quickly mumbles before following Pepper's lead and sitting back down in her chair.

"Don't worry, he's not as intimidating as you think he is," Pepper forces out a smile as if she actually had to say that to calm her nerves. It didn't help. All January could do was nervously chuckle as she looked down at the table. Across the way, she could see the Pepper clearly had her resume and a manila folder. The resume looked fairly clean with the exception of a few remarks on the side for her. She wondered if Pepper had written those down as good notes or if they were ripping on her lack of experience. January's confidence started to shrink smaller and smaller with each passing second. She just wanted to curl up into a ball in the chair and hideaway.

Although she knew she was fighting for this position. She had to make herself stand out more than the other contenders for the job. "So," January starts, her voice barely audible until she clears her throat again, catching Pepper's attention. "How have you been? Do anything fun last night?" she questions the assistant, who merely perks a questionable brow up at her. This must be the first time someone's ever asked her how she was instead of Tony Stark. "I've been fine. I went to a Zumba class last night," Pepper answers.

"Is it fun?"

Pepper shrugs her shoulders with a small smile on her face, "It's a workout, that's for sure,"

"What about you? Do you work out?" Pepper asks, feeling more relaxed now. January lets out a small chuckle, "I haven't in a while. But I was on my high school swim team,"

"I see that," Pepper hums out. "It's on your resume. You won state for freestyle," she plucks out the piece of paper that has her achievements on it. "Why'd you stop?"

"Oh, you know," January sighs out. "Parents couldn't afford my coach and then I went to college,"

"No scholarships offered?" Pepper questions, genuinely curious. January shakes her head, "None worth the time."

Pepper inhales a deep hiss of breath. "I'm sorry it didn't work out for you. You might've gone to the Olympics," she replies in a pitiful voice. January sighs in agreement, however, she really didn't care for swimming. The countless times she got swimmers ear, waking up at five in the morning to go under the brisk pool water, never did amount to winning state. January opens her mouth to reply but the door bursts open with a new - yet vaguely familiar face. The man, who she could only assume was Tony Stark, had large circles under his eyes from a restless night of sleep, his hair was somewhat messy from what she could only assume was a quick run-through of a brush. He looked exhausted. But familiar. Not only had she seen him on television before, but she had seen him somewhere else.

Her eyes drift towards his facial hair and then it all comes slamming back into her mind at a million miles a second. This was her chivalrous, mystery man last night. But how didn't she recognize him last night? Was she really that drunk? Her jaw plops open slightly as his eyes connect with hers. "Miss Jenner, I'd like you to meet Mister Stark," Pepper's voice alerts her of what's going on, however it felt distant. "Oh my god," she whispers out under her breath.

She could feel her hands becoming shaky as she watches him approach the table, his eyes riddled with visible confusion. "Huh!" he gasps out befuddled as he goes to take a seat. She can feel her cheeks warming up with embarrassment. Time to chalk this interview up as a failure already. Tony cracks open a small pill bottle from in his pocket, dumping a couple of creamy colored tablets in his hand - unmistakably ibuprofen for his hangover.

"I know you said our paths would cross again but I didn't take it literally and so soon," he finally speaks up, confirming January's worst nightmare. Pepper looks between the two who continued to gaze at each other in confusion. "You two know each other?" she questions, her voice slightly rising an octave. January is the first to immediately drop out of the trance to answer, "No." Just as Tony shortly answers with a, "Yes."

This only caused Pepper's face to become more contorted with confusion just as January's cheeks become hot with embarrassment. "We met last night at The Capital," he quickly answers Pepper's question. "This was the second interview you were celebrating?" he asks with a slight smirk of disbelief on his lips. January wants to roll her eyes but she refrains. Pepper clears her throat gaining her attention. "So, did anything happen...?" she trails off as she points between the two with the pen in her hand. This causes January to blush violently.

"Oh no! He just bought me a shot and kept me company for a bit," she tries to explain in as little detail as possible, ensuring her with a sweet smile. "Her friend abandoned her, I was her knight in shining armor," he comments, leaning back in his seat. "Can I see her file?" he asks, reaching front of Pepper and grabbing her resume and whatever notes she had put in the folder. It takes a moment for Pepper to even register what was happening but, she easily relaxes into a forced smile. "Well, lucky you, meeting the star of the company already -"

Pepper can't even finish her sentence before Tony begins to blurt out whatever he's thinking. "Your name is January?" he questions, brows furrowing. "Is this real or did you change it when you moved out here for like a stage name for the limelight...or the red light district -"

"It's my actual name," she interrupts with a soft chuckle of nervousness. "It was my grandmother's name," she informs him, causing him to perk his brows up in astonishment. "Got any siblings? February, March, April?" he teases in a monotone voice that makes January think he isn't joking. Meanwhile, Pepper rests her head in her hands while whispering out a low, "Oh my god."

"I do," January answers honestly. "All brothers - not named after the months of the year." she clarifies. Tony hums at the answer as he puts the file back down on the table, meeting her gaze. It was as if he were analyzing her for flaws. Pepper takes this moment to take in a deep inhale and collect her thoughts as she turns to January. "So do you have much experience in this -"

"You have animal fur on your blouse," Tony points out, talking over Pepper which ultimately frustrates her. January glances down at her blazer to notice the white fur attached to her. Of course, Jiji's fur got on her when she held her this morning. "What do you have? A golden retriever? A yellow lab? Samoyed?" he begins to list off.

"Close," she smirks. "A cat,"

"You're a cat person?" he sounds amazed at this point as if she had thrown a wrench into his thoughts. She nods her head as she watches him relax back down to a leaning position. "Makes sense you look like your self reliant, independent, you don't take shit from people," he comments, making January think that this wasn't even about the interview. It wasn't. This was about their unorthodox meeting last night. "Uh," she hums out not sure of whether she can take it as a compliment.

"Never been a big fan of cats. Maybe I can change," his tone is soft but she knows where this is leading. He had tried to hit on her last night. He was doing the same now in a professional setting. January didn't know whether to applaud him for having the balls to do it or be offended since this was supposed to be a serious interview. "Tony! Please," Pepper raises her voice as if she were warning him to be on his best behavior. "Please tell me I don't smell bourbon on your breath," she warns him in a low tone that was supposed to be hushed but January could still make it out. Bourbon? This early in the day? She quickly pegged him to be quite the alcoholic which would explain why he could hold his own last night.

"January, do you have experience in this field?" Pepper sighs out, obviously over her frustration from Tony. "Well, no, but I did graduate from college with the degree and I'm a fast learner. I can handle anything that's thrown at me," January answers, totally ignoring Tony's presence as he was there to only serve as a distraction. "I can tell," she says under her breath. "And if we were to hit you, you do have reliable transportation? It's vital, just in case you need to actually go out and find the source of whatever is being said about Mister Stark,"

"Yes," she answers, almost robotically. So far this has been easy for her. "And do you have a problem with people being rude -"

She can't even finish her sentence before Tony starts speaking once again. "I'm going to say something that could cause a potential lawsuit for sexual harassment -"

"Oh, god, Tony please don't," Pepper begs him, closing her eyes tightly as January turns her attention to the renowned billionaire, intrigued. He hesitates for a moment as he meets her gaze, lingering on her for more than just a few moments. January wants to shift uncomfortably in his gaze but she challenges him as if she was waiting for him to say something stupid.

"I'm going to marry you one day."

She didn't expect it to be that stupid. Or bold. Her mind draws a blank as she furrows her brows in confusion. Did he really just say that. Maybe she just misheard him. Judging by Pepper hiding her face behind her hands, she definitely didn't misunderstand him. "What?" she asks in a soft tone, hoping for some reason she was wrong. The smirk on his face only grows as he continues to look at her.

"Miss Jenner, I'm so sorry, he gets like this when he's drunk," Pepper apologizes on behalf of the billionaire, giving her hand a tight squeeze with her own before turning back to her boss. "Tony that was so uncalled for," she hisses at him, only to watch him chuckle. "No I'm serious," he affirms as he takes his gaze off of Pepper and returns it to January's unsure eyes. "I have never been wrong about something in my entire life. Comes with the genius territory and good looks and being handsomely wealthy,"

January bites down on her bottom lip as she realizes that he only wants his ego stroked. Maybe watching her feel uncomfortable made him happy. "Mm," January hums as she shrugs her shoulders. She looks directly into his eyes, a fire burning behind them as she's never felt this frustrated before. She had been sexualized by strange men before but none of them had ever straight up said they were going to make her their wide.

"Well, it looks like you're going to be wrong Mister Stark," she jeers, the tiniest smirk playing on her lips as he returns it. This was just fun banter to him. Making comments like that was just for his mere amusement. "Can we continue please?" Pepper desperately tries to get this interview back on track. "Tony, I'm just going to need you to please be quiet for a couple more minutes,"

"No we don't need to continue, she's hired," he boldly states. January's heart stops dead in her chest, a nervous sweat building up on the back of her neck. She was sure he couldn't just do that, although he was the owner of the company. There was no way. However, instead of asking the right questions she joins Pepper in a very confused, "What?"

Tony clears his throat as he picks through the manila envelope once again, rereading her file as he begins to list off why she's the perfect candidate for the position. "Your background check came in clear, you have a master's in this area of expertise. You don't have any experience but I think you're a fast learner. You pass the test," he says breathlessly as if he were actually giving her good news. He turns to Pepper with a deadpan look. "She's my publicist," he states, pointing to her with the manila file.

Pepper pats him on the shoulder, sharing the same confused face as January. "I don't think you're thinking this through with your head,"

January dares to nod her head in agreement. "Yeah me neither," she speaks up.

"You don't have a say, you're unemployed," he states his gaze never leaving Pepper's glare, causing her narrow her eyes at him as if she were insulted. "Yes, Pep, I'm thinking this through in my head and it feels right -"

"Which head? Because you basically just proposed to a woman you just met when you have a girlfriend," Pepper criticizes, frustration filling her voice. January watches as he anxiously taps the folder on the desk numerous times. She could actually see the wheels in his head-turning. It didn't matter if he was drunk or sober, he still had an intelligent look to him. She almost feels embarrassed as he turns and catches her staring at him. "I retract the proposal statement for now, but the offer still stands," he notes.

January couldn't tell if that was an apology or if it was just another bold statement. He turns back to Pepper, who ultimately looks like she wants to quit from how angry she was. "I want her." he simply states once again, his tone unwavering as he challenges his assistants glare. After a moment, Pepper sighs as she swivels back around to face January. Tony's word was law, no matter how stupid it was. "When can you start?"


	6. CHAPTER VI

**CHAPTER SIX**

**( **JAN'S BIG GIRL JOB **)**

**THE MIDDAY RUSH of the bar** had finally come to a slow. January was thankful for this as she thought she had arrived too early. She wore a grin from ear to ear as she perched herself up on the barstool, waiting to catch Babs's attention. However, it appeared that she was far more interested in talking to her patrons from across the bar than greeting her.

She didn't take this to heart, she had to be making money somehow while being on the job. Instead, January grabbed the small cocktail menu, grazing over the options that she could order. She could possibly order something more expensive than what she usually got, but seeing as how she just got the job and her first paycheck was bound to be weak she resisted the temptation.

"If it isn't little Smiles Magee," a voice catches her attention from beside her, causing her to drop the menu in her hand. She recognized the voice, purely from the soft Irish accent rubbed in it. A small, playful smile crosses her lips as she turns to face the man. "Penn!" she greets in an excited tone.

Her eyes eat up his figure as he stands next to her at the bar, his hands in the front pockets of his apron as a small smirk appears on his lips. She tries her best not to stare at the tattoos on his forearms, deeming them the most attractive part of him. Penn was an overall bad boy, that she never got the chance to date. Mainly, because she's denied him several times even though she had always had quite the crush on him, especially when she first moved to California.

However, she made a promise to herself that she wouldn't date anyone until she knew she was financially secure and locked down. Perhaps it was time to make her move. "Haven't seen you in a while," January notes. "Where have you been?"

"The night shift," he answers politely. "Can never make decent money working the lunch shift,"

"And yet, you're here," she teases.

"Someone needed me to cover. I'm in no position to say no," Penn easily shrugs off in response, as if it were no big deal that he gave up his free time to take a shift at the bar. His eyes peer into hers quizzically, a mischievous glint appearing in them. "What about you? Find a job yet?" he questions, a coy smirk crossing his lips.

Jan could easily get lost in the way he was looking at her. Most of the time if a man eyed her like this she'd call him a creep, but since it was Penn - a man she'd been after for a while - she certainly soaked in the attention. She clears her throat, trying to shake her mind away from how delicious he looked at the moment.

"Actually I just got back from an interview that I nailed. I totally got the job," she responds in a nonchalant tone, yet a broad smile forms on her lips. "Nice!" he yips out, holding his hand up for a high-five which she eagerly claps. "Are you going to celebrate?"

"Ah, I actually celebrated with Babs last night," she dismisses, pursing her lips. "It was for my second interview but I don't think I can go out with her model friends again," she admits, trying to stifle back a chuckle.

Her eyes finally make eye contact with Babs from across the bar, who merely smiles at her presence while still waiting on her guests. "Ah yeah, they come in here sometimes," Penn replies, his face scrunching up at the thought of the beautiful looking models sitting at the bar. "They're kind of spacey," he states, gesturing with his hands to emphasize the word "spacey".

Jan nods her head in return. Hopefully, he wasn't grouping Babs in as well. She may be out there but overall she was her friend. "But that doesn't mean you shouldn't celebrate. I could buy you a drink," Penn offers, piquing her interest.

"You're working," she scoffs with an eye roll.

"Not Saturday. I traded my night for a morning so I could see my mate's band play," he admits, slightly shrugging as his attention turns towards the two frozen mugs placed up on the bar in front of him by Babs. "You could come, if you want to," he mumbles out sheepishly, something she had never seen before.

January merely nods her head, taking in the offer. She could use this as an opportunity to get out and actually see the town, also possibly form a real relationship with a cute guy. "I'll have to look at my schedule, but I'll let you know," she adds a cheesy wink for good effort, making the server lightly chuckle and roll his eyes. "This for fifty-four?" he questions, grabbing both beers by the handles, letting the frothy foam pour over the sides.

Jan hadn't even noticed that Babs had been there just quietly watching the two flirt for a moment. A heated feeling of embarrassment bubbles up inside her chest.

"Yep," Babs simply states, plopping a piece of popcorn in her mouth - a common sight for servers and bartenders since the popcorn was out on every table as a sort of appetizer. Just looking into Babs's dark eyes made her want to curl up in a ball and die from embarrassment. There was no way she was going to live this down. Penn slightly nudges her as he leaves, a smirk on his face, "See you around, Smiles,"

Jan gives him a small wave as she watches him disappear from the bar. She couldn't help but give him a once over. He really wasn't her ideal type, she can't even remember the last she went on a date with a guy with tattoos - if that even happened. But for some reason, she was drawn to him. Perhaps it was because he was the only genuine person in this fake city, aside from Babs. He spent most of his time as a vet tech, helping out animals, and then the other part was working in a bar to make ends meet.

His first job sounded like a dream, working with animals while serving as his second job sounded less than ideal, something her parents would definitely judge her for. "Gag me, were you flirting with my coworker?" Babs speaks up, breaking her concentration from staring at Penn. She jumps a little as she turns to see Babs leaning on the counter of the bar near her, also looking at Penn. "Maybe," she mumbles out under her breath. "Are you finally going out with him?" Babs asks, turning around to lean against the back of the bar, being careful not to place her full weight on the shelves of alcohol.

"Merely celebrating," Jan smugly states, a sly smile growing on her face as she points to a shot on the bar menu that she wanted. She could see the curious gleam in her friends eyes. "Oh?" she quips as she grabs a shot glass from underneath and placing it on the bar in front of her. After she pours the shot, a sweet mix of vodka, grenadine, and soda water - dubbed the Grenade, she looks to January who had a slick and bubbly look on her face even while taking the shot.

"You have the worst poker face. Something happened. What's going on?"

"I got the job!" Jan squeals, unable to contain her excitement anymore. Even Babs's usual sultry face turns excited.

"You did? Congrats, babe!" she shouts over the counter. "What do you want? On the house," she quips, running her hand along the top shelf of the bar where the good alcohol is stored. Jan's face turns somewhat sour. "I just got a shot -"

"Yeah, but that was a pre-shot," Babs excuses her. Jan's brows raise at the logic. If she continued to enable her she was going to turn into an alcoholic. "Can I just get a daiquiri?" she requests, squinting her eyes at the menu. Babs, in turn, nods her head once and returns to her usual pace behind the bar, also picking up a few drink orders from the printer that she neglected for a few minutes.

Jan's mind was still buzzing from the interview early, how unorthodox the whole meeting was. It was just her luck to meet the indomitable Stark before her interview. She wondered how it would've gone if she hadn't have met him the day before. Would he still have been obnoxious? The frozen drink slides in front of her along with Babs's curious gaze.

"So tell me everything. What's it like? When do you start?" she lists off. Jan takes a brain-numbing sip of the daiquiri which is more potent than usual. Babs must've mixed in too much vodka. She makes a sour and puckered face as she recovers from the swig, giving Babs the satisfaction that she did make the drink hearty enough for her.

"Totally weird," she gave out, trying to catch a breath of air. The aftertaste in her mouth staying behind and giving her aftershocks of the alcohol.

"Do you remember anything from last night?" she asks, knowing that she probably wouldn't remember. It's be a miracle if she did, she was wasted. Babs bobs her head from side to side as she tries to recall the events of the club. "It's all kind of fuzzy," she finally admits, watching January playfully roll her eyes.

"Uh-huh," Jan chides. "Well, last night I was sitting alone -"

"Sorry -" Babs whispers under her breath. When she started drinking she became a new person that didn't care for anyone but herself. Jan has pointed it out to her numerous times.

"And this guy came over and sat by me," Jan continues after waving off the apology. "And we got to talking and he was flirting with me but you know me, I'm coy, I'm not going home with a stranger,"

"Uh-huh," Babs says distracted by the incoming drink tickets coming through to her for her to make.

"So I didn't tell him my name or anything, all I said was maybe we'd meet again,"

"Classic,"

"No! But it really happened!" Jan exasperates, catching Babs's undivided attention. She looks at her confused as to why she was making a big deal out of this. "What did? Did you run into him? Was he like also applying for the job?" she nonchalantly asks, continuing to make drink orders.

"No, Babs, that guy was Tony Stark,"

Babs's eyes go wide, her heart slips up on a beat, causing her to almost drop the glass in her hands. "What!" she gasps in shock and awe. She missed out on an opportunity to see Tony Stark, flirt and talk to him, all because she was too busy making out with her co-worker.

Now she was flabbergasted and intrigued by her friends story. "I mean it makes sense," Jan shrugs. "We were in the VIP lounge last night and he did have this high tech thing on him that he was tinkering with,"

Babs snaps her fingers for Jan to come back to earth and focus on telling her story. "Back to the story, how did you find out it was Tony Stark?"

"He interviewed me!" Jan shouts, just as in awe as Babs. "No way!"

"That's not even the best part, do you know what this pretentious asshole said to me in front of his assistant who was also interviewing me?" January begins to giggle just from thinking about how straight forward and ludacris his comment was to her.

"What?"

"That he was going to marry me!"

Her friends face scrunches up in disgust. Even she had a knack for sniffing out douchebags. "I smell a lawsuit. Why did you accept it? I thought you hated people like that?" she questions. For a moment, January is stumped. Babs was completely right, it was against her entire moral judgment to go work for an egotistical bastard of a flirt. She had curbed so many offers like that in Chicago. Was there really a difference like that here? She shakes the thoughts of her going against her own code an shrugs.

"Not in the position to say no," she states, drowning her own inner turmoil out with a swig of the numbing alcohol. "That's true," Babs replies. "So when do you start?"

"Tomorrow,"

"Jesus," she hisses out, a scowl crossing her face. "So soon?"

"I guess they need me right away,"

Babs releases a pent up sigh, "Well I have to say, I am a little jealous,"

This perks Jan's interests. Babs had never been jealous of her before. Babs had the beauty, the grace, and the confidence out of the pair and suddenly she was jealous of her. It was a new feeling that she'd never felt before. She couldn't quite stick a name to it as it bubbled in her chest with joy. Was this pride? "Why?" Jan questions, trying not to sound too overly excited about having the upper hand on Babs.

"Because you literally have a billionaire asking you to marry him and I'm a model and a bartender,"

What she wanted to say was for Babs to go back to school and get an education. Encourage and nurture her to not to make herself feel bad. But instead, a nervous chuckle spews from her mouth. "Me? Marry him? Oh, yeah, right. You can have him if you really want. I have someone else in my sights,"

Her eyes rest on the relaxed figure of Penn as he greets a table, his smile warm in greeting. Babs rolls her eyes as she connects Jan's love-driven gaze to the flirty server. "Who Penn?" Her voice sounds higher than usual, a tone she'd use for judging people.

She didn't think he was that attractive - not more attractive than Jan's new boss - but to each their own. However, she'd never seen Jan in such a daze, it might've been the first time she'd genuinely seen her happy since the move. Babs purses her lips as she looks at her friend. "Babe, do you really think going on a date with him is a good idea?"

"What do you mean?" January questions, her brow arching a little as she can hear the heat in her tone. "I don't know, you just tend to fall a little fast and I know Penn and he's not the kind of guy you settle down with," Babs tries to convince her, cleaning the bar in front of her in the process to make it seem like she was doing some work while talking to her friend. Jan snorts, "I'm not going to fall for him, I promise, I just need someone -"

"To check your pipes?" Babs cuts her off, a sly smirk placing itself on her lips. A vibrant red hue tinges Jan's cheeks at the remark. "Elegantly phrased," she notes, taking a sip of her drink. Maybe the coolness would put out the fire in her belly that ignited just by Babs's suggestion.

"So why wouldn't you want a stranger to do that?" Babs blankly asks, returning to work as she begins to pour a pint that had come through. Jan's mouth twists into a slight frown as she begins to overthink. She liked Penn, but if she were to trust Babs's judgment she wasn't going to have a fun time.

In a way, Babs was right. She did tend to fall easily, and hard. But that was Midwest Jan, this is west coast Jan and she could easily have friends with benefits. "I don't know, I just like the connection," Jan lies trying to sound cool, although she could tell by the tone in Babs's voice when she said her name that she knew she was lying through her teeth.

If she was being honest with herself, yes, she would like Penn to be with her. For how long is the next question. She knew if she brought him home her parents would flip because of the way he looked and his chilled out and laid back attitude. She shuffles awkwardly in her seat, trying her best not to let the nerves get to her. Babs notices the shift in her attitude, from going from pleasant sunshine to mopey and socially inept.

"Jan..." she hisses out from under her breath. She runs a hand down her face as she stands in front of the redhead behind the bar. "All right, it's been officially decided that I'm going to spy on your date -"

Jan hastily states, "Please don't -", as she sips on her drink but Babs ignores her wishes. "It's already been decided, there's no going back," she states confidently, knowing damn well that it was also an excuse to go out with her friend. "What if he sees you?" Jan asks the obvious.

"He shouldn't be able to see me if he can't keep his eyes off of you," she notes. "Even you won't even notice I'm there,"

"That's actually kind of sweet," Jan gives her the benefit of the doubt, as she sees the gears shifting in her head. She was already assembling outfits and ways to get close enough to her to eavesdrop and still not be able to be seen.

January scratches her forehead with the backside of her thumb out of nervousness, groaning in the process. There was no way she could convince her not to go. But she knew Babs would take full responsibility if she got caught. Hopefully. Or else she'd seriously have to reconsider being friends with the model.

She lets out an exasperated sigh as she nods her head, granting her permission to be undercover on her date. Babs can't help but let out a high pitched, giggle that made her want to roll her eyes. She knew she liked getting dolled up for the weekends and she just gave her an excuse to go all out on dressing up. "Let me know when you're date is and I'll see if someone can cover for me," Babs states, already beginning to scribble things down about the date in her server book.

"And hey, hopefully, your boss won't be there," she teases with a wink that makes January almost spit out her drink. Instead, she gags on the drink for a moment before glaring up at her friend. The last thing she wanted to do was envision Tony Stark crashing a date. Babs's facial expression becomes more serious than teasing for a moment as she watches her friend choke on the daiquiri.

"Seriously, I don't think he goes to little garage bands," she tries to ease her conscience as she slides her a receipt for the shot she had taken earlier. January sniffles as she tries to gain her composure, grasping on to the pen Babs laid down in front of her.  
"Thanks for the life-changing advice," she sarcastically remarks, wiping her nose on a napkin.

Babs cheerily picks up the receipt and places it in her book, before flashing her a dazzling smile, "Anytime, babe,"


	7. CHAPTER VII

**CHAPTER SEVEN**

**( **A CERTAIN RITUAL **)**

**JAN**** TAKES A deep breath as** she steps out of her car, looking up at the tall building that was going to become part of her daily routine from now on. Her heart flutters in her chest as her feelings become mixed. Yes, she was excited to finally have a job in her degree welcome her but also anxious.

For someone without experience to be working for someone like Tony Stark made her extremely uncomfortable but she had to convince herself that it was good for her, she was tip-toeing outside of her comfort zone which Babs always harped on her for not doing. She shrugged off the burning pit of nerves that decided to burrow its way into her gut, acknowledging that they were just first-day jitters. She'd never walk into the building without her confidence ever again after today.

Her form is completely covered by the enormous shadow of the looking building as she stalks to the front door, both of her hands gripping on to the strap of her purse for reassurance. Once she entered the building all sense of confidence fled her body. She was once again to awestruck to speak up. If only she had gotten more information down from Pepper besides, "Be here at eight".

Maybe then she wouldn't be looking around like a fish fresh out of water. The anxiety in her stomach began to flutter as she noticed people casually walking by her with their own destinations in mind. Did they look at her? Did they notice that she was new? Was it obvious? Why didn't anyone stop to help?

Finally, Jan struck up the nerve to head up to the front desk, where a beautiful woman with long dark hair sat, looking down at her computer. For some reason, she felt intimidated by her but she knew she was the only way to get some answers around here. January clears her throat nervously, "Excuse me, hello?"

The woman merely peers up at her, no smile, not even a single gleam of empathy coming from her dark eyes. "Yes?" she speaks in a bored tone. January shows her a nervous, submissive smile. "Hi, uhm, it's my first day here," she begins, looking into the judgmental gaze of the receptionist. "I'm Mr. Stark's new publicist. Do you know exactly where he is or where miss Potts is -"

"Publicist?" The woman speaks up, her voice rising in a somewhat offended tone which made her shudder. "I was never informed of a publicist starting today," she states, her brow perking up as she scanned over her features, sizing her up. The interaction made Jan's fight or flight instincts kick in. She wasn't about to be bullied on her first day by some prima donna who no doubt came from the richer Los Angeles area. "Ah, I'm s-sorry?" Jan stammers out more nervous than flustered.

The receptionist's eyes narrow as she begins a staredown with her. It was turning into some sort of standoff. "Is this some kind of ploy to get you to speak with Tony? Are you some kind of desperate one night stand?" she purrs in a sarcastic-empathetic tone. Jan's cheeks become heated at the mere suggestion of her and Tony getting together, especially since it just reminded her how cocky he was during her interview.

"I!" Jan exclaims in a rather loud tone, drawing the attention of the receptionist along with a few passerby's. She covers her mouth at the sudden change in the tone of her voice. The woman infuriated her, got under her skin, and with the ever-growing smirk on her face she was relishing in the fact that she had. "I am not a one night stand. I was just hired in -"

"She's with me!" Pepper's voice calls out from behind the reception desk. Jan smiles as she sees the frantic assistant sauntering towards them, arguing with whoever was on the phone - perhaps Tony. She was a sight for sore eyes. She lets out an irritated sigh before hanging up the phone and directing her attention towards Jan. She gives her a slight smile before looking towards the receptionist.

"It's okay Lana, she's got access to the building," she repeats. "She'll be shadowing me for a moment while she gets all settled into the company," she informs her as she grabs ahold of the clipboard under her arm. Her eyes dart to Jan's for a moment holding an uncertainty to them. "Are you okay with that? I didn't want to throw you to the wolves on your first day," she pleads, throwing Jan completely off.

Jan absentmindedly nods her head, "No I'm completely fine with that. Show me the ropes." she nervously chuckles, trying to make a joke out of this. Once again Pepper flashes her a smile. It makes her feel at ease and more comfortable than what she had originally come in feeling like. She no longer had the urge to vomit from her anxiety.

"Let me show you around first," Pepper states, drawing her around behind the receptionist desk, where she could freely work amongst the flocks of people who were coming in droves. "It seems you've already met our receptionist, this is Lana," she points to the dark-haired woman behind her, who gives Jan a small wave and an even smaller smile. A slight change in how she acted from when they had met.

"It's her job to alert anyone that someone is here, right Lana?" Pepper informs her while also holding a scolding tone directed at the receptionist who merely shrugs and nods her head. "Actually, she's not the usual receptionist," Pepper continues, leaning closer to January as if it were a secret. "Regina called off today. Lana is Tony's personal receptionist. She's been here for about a year?"

"Right," Lana affirms while also pointing at her. Her dark eyes then drift over to January, this time actually holding a bit of empathy in them for her. "Sorry for thinking you're a one night stand. You'd be surprised how often that happens," she mumbles out an apology. January is taken back how quickly she's rolled over just because Pepper arrived to explain her situation.

Pepper encases her shoulders in an awkward embrace, squeezing her tightly. "I'm thankful for her. She's taken a lot of load off of my plate," she comments. Lana lets out a forced chuckle before agreeing with her and telling her she's welcome.

Before she could even utter a goodbye to Lana, Pepper was already tugging her along to show her around the rest of the company. "And you'll be relieving me of some stress too," she adds after a moment from walking away from the front. "You wouldn't believe how hectic it can get with Tony and keeping him in line. I practically had to beg him for help,"

January lets out a small laugh. "Well I'm happy to help," she replies with a small smile on her face. Pepper leads her down an open-ended corridor, where a sea of desk waited off to the right side of the hallway. Although it was open with windows leading up to the tall ceiling, it felt cold and empty. She pushed it aside, claiming it was only like this because it was early in the morning and people were still drifting in.

Each desk was divided by a small wall. They weren't cubicles but it did give off a sense of privacy. "So this is the HR department," Pepper informs her, as she leads her down the first row of desks. Jan noticed that the rows of desks were facing back to back. "You'll be shacking up here for a while," she instructs her, showing her an empty desk.

Jan wanted to perk a brow up as she examined it but kept to herself. It was...a desk...with a computer...and a phone...and a chair. There was nothing personable about it. She'd have to bring in her own things to make it her own. Jan places her purse in the chair, before pushing it in and following Pepper once again.

Pepper goes into extreme detail about every department, what they do and who to ask if she needed any help from them (which she shouldn't be in need of their help). The smell of warm baked food wafts throughout the air, making her stomach gurgle, and luring them into the cafeteria. "Here's the cafe, you can stop here whenever you need food obviously. Just don't take liquids back to your desk without a top," Pepper informs her pointing to the open room with a few round tables and what looked like to be a coffee shop in the middle, serving pastries and warm food.

Jan wants to stop and pick up at least a muffin, it sounded way better than the granola bar she had for breakfast, but Pepper continued to drag her throughout the facility.

As they approached a section in the hallway the opposite direction from her desk she heard muffled voices of outrage and disbelief. She watched as Pepper rolled her eyes and exhaled. "In there is our legal team," she states, pointing to the closed door.

She can see a few faces through the small window of the door. None looked like they wanted to be there at the moment. "You'll probably be working with them a lot along with HR. We'll meet them when they're not busy," Pepper shrugs off before tugging her along back to the main entrance to where a few staircases were.

She forces her to ascend them, which January begrudgingly does so in heels that make her want to die. She's obviously slower than Pepper, who's been doing this for years. She waits patiently as Jan clamors up to the top of the stairs, wobbling in her shoes. She flashes her an apologetic smile before continuing to follow her.

"This is Mr. Stane's office," she addresses as she tilts her head to a solid wooden door at the end of the hallway. "I don't think he's here yet but you'll meet him eventually," she continues. "You know where my office is," she shrugs off, pointing to the other end of the hallway while watching Jan nod her head.

Pepper pivots on her heel to look straight forward at the door in front of them. "And then there's Mr. Stark's office," she states, as she begins to head towards the door. She presses her head up against the wood as she knocks, waiting for a response. After a moment she twists the door open to reveal the office that Tony isn't currently residing in.

This confuses Jan for a moment. The company was open and everyone was at work, where was he? "Which, surprise, surprise, he's not here," Pepper chides before turning and throwing her hands up to the office asking for her approval. January merely nods as she looks around the office. It's definitely better than Pepper's office, bigger, brighter, fewer decorations though. "Get used to him not being here," Pepper states, causing Jan to furrow her brows.

"Is he coming in today?" She blurts out causing Pepper to look at her with a sly smirk. January realizes that it was an odd question to ask, her cheeks becoming heated with embarrassment. "Just curious," she mumbles out causing Pepper to let out a soft chuckle. "I'm not sure," she answers. "He's supposed to be here every day but let's face it, he's the owner of the company, he can come and go as he pleases,"

She notices that January's gaze drops to the floor and notes that for someone who was so adamant on not liking Tony she definitely let this get to her. She didn't want to be wrong about her, she wanted January to actually be invested in the job but not to the point where she had a crush on Tony. She couldn't have another Lana. "But you know who's always here?" Pepper states, trying to regain her attention which she successfully does. "Jarvis, can you introduce yourself to January? She's Mr. Stark's new publicist,"

Jan gives Pepper a confused look since there was no one else in the room besides them, but then jumps at the sound of a man's voice. "Certainly. My name is Jarvis, I assist Mr. Stark with all his needs,"

"Are the walls talking?" January asks, her voice sounding panicked as she heads to the center of the room, circling around to find out where the voice was coming from. Pepper can't help but let out a small chuckle as she watches the publicist twirl and twist around uncomfortably. She remembered at a point in time where she too was wary of Jarvis.

She clasps on to her shoulders steadying her and reassuring she was fine. "Jarvis is an A.I. - artificial intelligence system - that Tony created to help him but I think he's only here to help Tony unwind and give someone to talk to," she teases the computer, which confuses January even more.

An A.I. system? That was only in movies and television. She didn't think there were actual real A.I.'s at the time. But then again Tony was apparently a self-proclaimed genius and he had the money to waste on things that seemed trivial so why not build an expensive computer that could hold a personable A.I.

"I can be anything Mr. Stark needs me to be," Jarvis responds in a cool and collected tone. She did have to hand it to Tony, there was something soothing in its voice. "Creepy," she mutters under her breath.

"Ms. Potts you are due for a meeting with legal in about ten minutes. It's about -"

"Okay, Jarvis thank you," Pepper abruptly cuts the A.I. off hurriedly. She turns to see Jan's face contorted and confused. "Sorry you're just brand new and I can't spill any details about the company yet," Pepper apologizes. January nods her head.

She understood, she was brand new and she hadn't proven her loyalty to the company yet. Sure, Pepper may have thought she was a good candidate but it was ultimately Tony's decision to hire her and he clearly wasn't thinking straight. "I know I said I'd let you be my shadow but sitting in on a legal meeting on your first day seems a little ambitious," Pepper excuses herself for being so abrupt as she begins to coax January to fend for herself for a moment.

"It's okay, really!" January replies with a warm smile although her curiosity was getting the best of her. She wanted to know what the meeting was about. "Let me walk you back to your desk and I'll come get you afterward," Pepper bargains with her, escorting her out of the office.

Jan was actually thankful for Pepper escorting her back to her desk, without her help there was no doubt she would get confused with how the layout was. And she certainly didn't want to head back up to the front desk to ask for help, not after her encounter with Lana.

Although, she might've apologized she still didn't trust her or the gleam in her eyes that said she's better than her. When they arrive back to the HR department it's quieter than when she had arrived this morning. In fact, the whole department was empty, leaving her and Pepper confused. "What's going on here?" Pepper questions out loud, sounding exasperated as she looked at the rows and rows of empty desks.

"They had a training retreat," a voice speaks up from behind them, forcing January to jump in her skin. She places a hand on her heart as ash turns around with Pepper, boring the broad smile on her face. The man was tall, maybe even as tall as her brother Conan who was easily six-five, he was also balding with a grey beard strapped to his face. His presence radiated importance.

"Oh Mr. Stane, so glad you could make it. I totally forgot all about the retreat. I must be on the wrong day of my schedule. Are you going to the meeting as well?" Pepper yips at the man. January is quick to catch on. This was Obadiah Stane - the president of the company, good friend of Howard Stark and partial mentor to Tony. No wonder he radiated importance.

"Of course, is the boss going to be there?" he questions lightly, causing Pepper to wave her hand through the air to display her frustration. "You know Mr. Stark," she sweetly teases but underneath it, she can depict that she was irritated. "By the way, this is his new publicist, January," she introduces, stepping aside and gesturing over to the redhead who kindly smiles at the man.

"Hello," she greets in a small voice before taking his hand to shake it. Her hand is engulfed by his. She hated feeling so small especially compared to Obadiah who was no doubt just as rich as Tony. "A new one, huh?" he jeers as he retracts his hand.

"Haven't seen any publicist's since a couple of years ago. You take over?" he questions Pepper before taking a sip of the coffee that was in his hand. Pepper bites down on her bottom lip in an irritated fashion before nodding her head. "I did, yes, but I've been so caught up with all this work Mr. Stark gave me I haven't been able to keep up in some aspects," she bites off begrudgingly.

So that's why she bitterly gnawed on her lip as soon as he brought it up. Jan knew she was taking a load off of Pepper's plate but she seemed frustrated about it while talking to Obadiah. For a moment January had thought she had done something wrong but she remembered Pepper saying she was grateful for coming along and working with her. Perhaps it was just a personal issue with Obadiah.

"Look at you go, off to bigger and better things," he congratulates, bumping her shoulder in a proud gesture that almost came off as sneering. He turns his attention back to January, his fraud cheeriness fading. "Well, it was nice to meet you. Hopefully, you'll stick around longer than the other publicist's before miss Potts," he comments before turning his back to head down to the legal side of the office, which Jan had noticed that's where the conference room was where Tony had hired her on the spot.

Pepper purses her lips as she watches Obadiah leave, then turns to see January's face, her mouth left hanging high and dry at Obadiah's comment. "Don't mind Mr. Stane, he's old and set in his ways," Pepper waves off his comment, trying to make January feel a little better.

She couldn't risk her leaving just because Obadiah got under her skin. She looks at her watch and jumps, alerting Jan that she was late, or at least was going to if she had to stay and babysit her for another moment. "I'll be back in a couple of hours at the most," Pepper informs her, ushering her over to her own desk. "Why don't you get aquatinted with the system," she hums out as she takes a sticky note from the neighboring desk and write on it, huffing out a sigh in the process.

"Here's your sign-on," she says under her breath as she forks the note over to her. "I'm sorry, Mr. Stark insisted," she apologizes on Tony's behalf. "And if you get bored of going through everything I'll send you a link of all the handbook stuff you have to fill out. You can print it off and hand it to me once you're done. Okay? I'll be right back," she rushes out before January can even open her mouth to even mutter out a question.

She watches as Pepper runs down the hallway, heels loudly clicking in the process. This was the strangest introduction to a job she's ever had. Perhaps it was just because they were so busy and Pepper was under stress. She seemed like she needed a vacation.

She glances down at the note with her sign on in hand and snorts at how preposterous it was. She rolls her eyes as she begins typing in her credentials.

_Username: Wisconsin, Password: Mrs. Stark_.

Even typing it made her giggle uncomfortably, as a pit of nervousness once again burrows into her stomach. She wondered why her username and password weren't switched but she figured that it was to save his ass or maybe it was the dissolvent of him and Pepper arguing about it. It seemed like they went toe to toe about almost everything.

She couldn't blame Pepper, she would also be irritated if she was always overlooked and never heard. Then her mind lingered to Lana at the front desk. Part of her wondered if he ever heard her complaints as well, there was no way she didn't go a single time without complaining to him about shooing off multiple one night stands. However, she became defensive over Tony, unlike Pepper who seemed over him. There must've been some connection between the two, she was beautiful after all. Far more beautiful than her. Lana could have Tony all to herself, she didn't want to seem like a threat when she wasn't interested. All she cared about was her job.

**_~ BOOK ONE: IRONMAN ~_**

**SHE COULDN'T REMEMBER how long she** had been sitting at her desk, slowly reading each line of legal paraphrasing in the handbook she had printed off, following Pepper's orders. She wasn't quite sure what to do when the phones behind her echoed through the empty office but she deemed it best to ignore since she wasn't an expert in anything relating to human resources. Besides, it's not like she's authorized to answer any phones without learning the proper etiquette.

The hum of voices overlapping each other drew near to the department, causing her to peer over the edge of her desk out of curiosity. People in suits all chatted outside near the lobby area, more drifting in from the other side of the hall, some were even making their way towards the cafe. She could only assume that the legal meeting had adjourned for a break or for good. It had been nearly three hours of her just sitting around and snooping through computer files, she could use someone to talk to.

She lets out an exasperated sigh before returning her attention to the handbook. There was no way anyone would see her or be interested in talking to her. She was alone and she assumed she didn't look approachable at the moment because of this. She did have the effect of not wanting to be bothered - or as Babs would call it "resting bitch face". She perks up a brow as she begins reading the handbook once again, just coming across the actual dress code which looked like it hadn't been updated in twenty years since the use of shoulder pads was brought up occasionally but there was nothing about showing mid-drift.

A sudden rapping on her desk alerted her of someone's presence. She jumped in surprise as she comes back into reality. To her surprise, someone did actually want to talk to her, and it wasn't Pepper. It was a man, maybe a couple years older than her but with a long face and a fraud smile with dimples on each cheek. His sleeked back dark hair made him look like a shot but his smile seemed to dupe his appearance.

"Hey, you're Tony's new publicist right?" he questions her out of the blue. She furrows her brows in confusion as she looks up at him, not quite understanding where the conversation was headed. "Yeah," she informs him with a slight edge to her tone. Apparently, he didn't receive the signal that she wanted to be left to her own devices since he continued to speak to her in a condescending tone.

"Awesome. My name is Winston Daniels. I'm Obie's publicist," he finally introduces himself, while pointing to his person with his thumb. Jan gives him a tight-lipped smile and a simple nod, not wanting to seem rude but a small and subtle indicator that she wanted to be left alone. "So we're like basically doing the same thing. Except I have my own office on the upper level," he explains.

Jan's eyes narrow at the man. Was he humble bragging or just bragging? Jan wants to call him out, to tell him he sounded conceited but she didn't want to seem like a bitch on the first day of work. "Oh, heh, yeah. That's cool," she mumbles out, trying to distract herself by looking at her computer screen instead of his face, thinking maybe he'd think she was busy. Her plan doesn't work as he continues to lean on the top portion of the cubicle, gazing down on her with sympathetic eyes.

"Hey so, I have a lot of notes about Tony and Obie and the company in general if you wanted to go over them," he blurts out of nowhere, throwing her off guard. Was he being nice? "I know it must be a bit of a shock coming here after coming from nowhere,"

Jan's jaw clenches at his statement. She didn't come from nowhere, she came from a family who loved her. She knew she hadn't worked fancy jobs but she didn't need to be undermined by someone she just met. However, she was in no position to push him away for information about Tony, she just had to keep reminding herself that she was doing this for her job. "Uh, sure. That'd be great," she lies, adding a sly smile to get on his good side.

He returns the smile and proceeds to give her a thumbs up in the process. "Cool, we can grab a bite to eat sometime this week and discuss them," he declares, stepping back from her desk, and turning to face the crowd of people who were milling about in the lobby area. "Later 'gator,"

She watches him with a glare as he leaves to join the group of lawyers, probably to converse about how hospitable the new publicist was. She watches as he barely grazing shoulders with the man she had been dreading to see all day. Tony Stark.

Her breath hitches and her eyes dart down to the handbook at her desk, trying her best to avoid any eye contact. She knew he'd come over and talk to her but what she didn't expect was the sudden dry feeling in her mouth. Anxiety was creeping up on her once again as the possibilities of what could happen run rampant through her mind. She could vomit or trip up on her words while talking to him. She didn't want him to take it the wrong way.

Before she can even think of how to politely reject him, he knocks on her desk just the way Winston had. "Am I going to have to implement a new policy of no dating in the company?" Tony questions with a slight smirk playing on his lips. Her mind ran blank for a moment but it quickly jolts back to life at the obvious flirty tone he had given her. It was time to give him a taste of his own medicine. "Well that would dampen your chances wouldn't it?" she nails the question with a coy smile crossing her lips.

He perks up his brow in a suggestive manner. "Are you saying I have a chance?" he asks in a teasing voice that makes her let out a soft chuckle at the audacity. "Not with me but with your receptionist," she points to the front desk, her tone suggesting something was happening between them.

Tony peers back at her in shock, flabbergasted she would even catch on to that. "Who Lana?" he asks, sounding offended but he quickly stammers out a response. "We never - I didn't - it was one time - it didn't mean anything - we were just having fun -"

"Did you just admit to sleeping with one of your employees in the literal HR department?" January questions with a sneaky look on her face as she peers up at Tony, who stops making up excuses and in turn just gazes at her. She had just conned him into outting one of his work relationships. One. It was easy to come back from this. He rolls his eyes. "Just don't sleep with that guy. He'll treat you good and make me look bad," he mumbles out.

"Oh, wow, thanks for the advice," January sarcastically. She had a lot of gumption to tease him. Daring and noteworthy confidence for a woman who just started working there to be able to speak to her boss that way. That's what made him long for her. She wasn't like the plastic dolls found in California. She was going to make him play her game. "I've just got to keep an eye out for future Mrs. Stark," he shrugs, watching her lazily roll her eyes.

"And with that good morning to you too," her eyes drift towards the clock, looking at it before stiffening her posture into a more professional stance. "I mean, good _afternoon_, Mr. Stark. Are you just getting in?"

"No, I've been in the legal meeting, with Pep. I had to give her something to do after the meeting but she said you'd be out here," he quickly rattles off like he had been rehearsing the phrase since he saw her - perhaps this was his professional demeanor. Whatever it was it melted fast as he turned his gaze back towards her. "Do you like your password?"

Jan snorts at the question as she stretches. _Mrs. Stark._ It was the ideal password she'd have in mind. "I'm literally sitting in the HR department, do I need to file a complaint about it?" Jan scoffs, watching a light-hearted smirk appear on his face again.

"Are you mad at me for making it?"

"It's a little out there," she idly shrugs.

"I can fix it. It's just a joke," he apologizes in an actually serious tone - something she hasn't heard from him since that night at the club. He tips his head towards her as if she were thinking about something hard. "Unless -" he pipes up only to have her crush his sentence with the single word, "No."

"Besides I don't think your receptionist would like that," she notes. He perks his brow up at the statement. This had been the second time in the conversation that she's brought up Lana. He had no idea that Lana would be the one to get under her skin, but now thinking about it it made sense. Lana was marking her territory.

"Would it bug you if I said hers is the same?" he teases as his gaze drifts over to the dark-haired receptionist, wearing an awfully right and low cut red shirt that made him bite down on his bottom lip in anticipation. She was teasing him at work now. "You'd only be confirming my suspicions," Jan's sweet voice teases him as she follows his gaze towards Lana. He swivels back around to see her studying the receptionist. The scowl on her face was precious enough to make him want to laugh.

"Jealous?"

"Not in a million years,"

He can't help but look down at the redhead who was keen on acting coy. He could tell by her smirk that she liked the attention even if she proclaimed she didn't. He snaps out of his trance, looking down at his watch before letting out a low whistle. "Well, it's one and I'm hungry. Do you want to grab lunch?" he eagerly asks, watching her cheeks tinge a hue of pink which he chalked up as a success. The ball was in his court.

"Uh," she stammers out, placing a strand of her hair nervously behind her ear. "I was just going to grab something when I left I'm not that hungry -"

"Did I phrase that as a question?" he quickly backtracks, letting out a low and breathy chuckle. "I'm sorry, I meant you _have_ to go to lunch. It's a tradition," he simply shrugs. Jan's face deadpans as she looks on to her superior. Did she want a free lunch? Yes, hell yes, she was dying for it. Did she want it to come from her boss? That was tricky.

She was starting to view Tony as a friend more than a boss which was something she didn't like, something that wasn't in her rule books. However, he was trying very hard to get her to like him and she wasn't just going to go willingly. "A tradition huh?" she reiterates, biting on the pen in her hand.

"Yeah. It's customary for a boss and his new employee to go out on a one on one -"

"Tony!" Pepper's shrill tone catches them both off guard. He freezes on the spot as if he had done something illegal and was just frozen in fear. January merely stifled a snicker as she looked at his panicked expression as Pepper stalked over to her desk where he was lounging at.

"I thought I gave you instructions to not do exactly what you're doing right now," Pepper scolds him. He looks at January for a moment as if he had been caught - which he had - with his hand in the cookie. He turned around to face Pepper, charming smile on his face, one that would usually melt any woman's heart but it only made her scowl even more.

"I was just inviting her out to lunch," he states as if he were innocent as if two seconds ago he hadn't teased her about wanting to marry him. Pepper rolls her eyes, she knew the game he was playing, she wasn't stupid, he had played this before and there was no doubt it would continue over and over again. January was just his new flavor of the week. Soon his infatuation would be over and hopefully, Jan wouldn't quit in the meantime.

"Lunch?" she questions in an annoyed tone, watching him nod his head. She huffs out another frustrated sigh, "You know you're booked since you're actually here for once. I have people up the wazoo trying to reach you through me -"

"Have Lana forward and clear everything. We'll all go out to lunch to celebrate her first day," he instructs her, watching her blink vividly twice before growling out in frustration. "We haven't done that in years,"

"Well some traditions are meant to be broken and then circled back to eventually," he replies in an excuse, hoping it would work. Ultimately he was the boss, he'd get his way eventually, she'd rather just delay it at any cost. She looks between him and January, wondering if she actually reciprocated his feelings. During the interview she was smart and declined his advances, now she wasn't. "Okay so who's going just you and Jan? Because I think that's a bad idea -"

"You, Obie, Winnie, some of legal and some of research. You know the usual, head honcho people so she can meet them," he abruptly cuts her off, throwing her through a loop. He was smart, covering his ass so it wouldn't seem like he was blatantly trying to get with his publicist.

"I-I'll see who can come on such short notice," she caves, watching his face light up with glee. He turns to January with an excited grin on his face. "Great, what's for lunch?" he asks her while clapping his hands together.

Her brows knit together in a confused fashion. "Why're you looking at me?" she questions, her voice raising an octave as if she were in trouble. He rolls his eyes and gives out a quick scoff. "Because you're new and you get to pick," he rolls off. "Pick anything within a reasonable price please because I don't want to take you to a fancy restaurant with everyone. We can do that one on one -"

"Tony," Pepper warns from behind him.

"With Pepper's supervision. Something under the radar as well, I don't need people coming up to me and asking me to sign things -"

"Yeah, no, I was thinking about going to the bar my friend works at," she quickly responds, cutting him off. Pepper gives her a befuddled look. "Bar? It's the middle of the day," she states in a judgemental tone. Jan opens her mouth to explain once again it's because Babs worked there but Tony cuts her off, "She said bar and I'm in. What's it called?"

"The Last Call. Don't worry, I'm not going to drink," she directs this to Pepper who gives her an assuring nod."Thank you," she replies with a smile. She did make a good choice in asking her for another interview. "I don't care if you do," Tony chimes in thinking she was talking to him. "You're much more fun to talk to because you're more loose when you have a few drinks in you,"

Pepper opens her mouth to oppose this but January beats her to the punch. "You're still standing in HR," she states, sucking in a deep, hissing, breath while wincing. She was letting him know where her boundaries were, something that Lana failed to do. Tony's eyes lock with Pepper's as he takes a deep breath. A little part of him disappointed that he wasn't going to alone time with Jan again but it also didn't seem like she wanted to be alone with him. That still didn't mean he wasn't going to try.

"Gather the forces, we'll meet you there," he instructs her watching her eyes go wide. January stands up, feeling nice after stretching her legs from sitting down for hours. She jingled her keys in her hand. "I'm going to take my own car," she informs Pepper who looked like she was about to burst a blood vessel with the stress Tony was putting her through. "Wise," she agrees with her under her breath. Tony throws her an offended look, shooting her down with his piercing gaze. "You can ride with me," he offers, pointing to his chest. Jan lets out a way laugh. "It's going to take a lot to get me into a car with you,"

He smirks at her lingering comment. "Challenge accepted,"


End file.
